Mesut Ozil

World Cup Journeys: Can Mesut Ozil the pass master assist Germany to a defence of its title?

In a country that has seen millions of migrants take up German citizenship, Germany has fielded an increasingly multicultural team at each successive World Cup since hosting the event in 2006.

Alongside the likes of Sami Khedira (who has a Tunisian father), Jerome Boateng (Ghanaian father) and Marko Marin (Bosnian-Serb heritage), Ozil is a third-generation Turkish-German, who says his ancestry comes from north-western Turkey. He credits his style of play to his heritage, but his attitude to his country of birth.

'Proud' Mesut Ozil pays tribute to Arsene Wenger and Arsenal impact

Ozil was signed by Wenger for £42.5m from Real Madrid in 2013 and has since gone on to make over 150 appearances for the Gunners and won the FA Cup three times.

On the day that Wenger announced he would leaving Arsenal at the end of the season, Ozil told Sky Sports: "He's the main reason I came here, he convinced me and I am proud to have played under him.

'Sanchez and Ozil won't be sold'

Both players are entering the final year of their contracts at the Emirates Stadium and have so far refused to sign extensions.

Sanchez is a target for Manchester City and was also linked to Chelsea late last season.

Sanchez, Ozil punish Boro

In what was billed as a must-win game for both teams for very different reasons, Arsene Wenger started with three at the back for the first time since 1997.

But it was through a sublime Sanchez free-kick that Arsenal took the lead before Alvaro Negredo equalised just after the break.

Ozil won the game for the Gunners with 19 minutes remaining as they moved to within seven points of Manchester City in fourth with a game in hand.

Ozil: Arsenal all that matters

This week's Monday Night Football defeat at Crystal Palace left Arsenal seven points behind fourth-placed Manchester City and was accompanied by significant numbers of supporters calling on Wenger to end his 21-year reign in the summer.

The manager will be out of contract while Ozil's deal, like team-mate Alexis Sanchez's, has little more than a year to run.