Germany coach Thomas Schneider has revealed that Mesut Ozil is still battling a back injury
The 29-year-old travelled with the rest of the Germany national team squad to the training camp in South Tyrol ahead of the 2018 World Cup.
However, Schneider went onto state that he is confident that Ozil will be fit in time for Germany’s World Cup defence.
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“We expect him to challenge himself in training to build up his resilience. Mesut is always receiving treatment,” Schneider told reporters.
“We expect him to push himself in the coming days and weeks leading up to the start of the tournament, and we’re confident he will manage.”
Ozil missed the tail end of Arsenal’s season due to a back injury he picked up during Arsenal’s defeat to Atletico Madrid in the Europa League.
Germany have been drawn alongside Mexico, Sweden and South Korea in Group F and take on Austria and Saudi Arabia in warm-up friendlies.
Ozil provided 14 assists and scored five goals in 35 appearances for Arsenal this season. The 29-year-old played a key role during Germany’s World Cup success in Brazil four years ago.
