Germany legend Michael Ballack believes Mesut Ozil could shine this season in the Europa League.
The 29-year-old helped his side reach the semi-finals last season where they were defeated by the eventual winners Atletico Madrid.
Ozil has travelled to Azerbaijan for the Gunners clash with Qarabag FK this evening. However, Unai Emery is unlikely to start his star playmaker with a clash with Fulham in the Premier League on the horizon.
Ballack believes Ozil could be the star of the tournament if he is motivated to play.
“It’s also a player who played on the highest level with Germany but also the Champions League,” Ballack told CNN.
“These kinds of players playing just Europa League? It’s a question of how much they really want to perform there.”
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Ballack also commented on Ozil’s retirement from international football and stated that the door is still open for a return to the German squad in the future.
“He’s still a really really good player, but he had his reasons to step back from the national team — the reasons are well known,” Ballack went on to say.
“He has to focus on is football, and maybe in the future things will change.”
Ozil recently penned a new deal with Arsenal and is contracted to the club until 2020. The 29-year-old has netted three goals in his last four games for the Gunners.
