Arsenal star Mesut Ozil has come under fire from sections of the German media after the 1-0 defeat against Mexico in the opening World Cup 2018 clash.
Borussia Dortmund winger and fellow Germany national teammate Marco Reus has came out in defence of Ozil.
Reus described the playmaker of Turkish origin as being one of the best players in the world and that he is convinced we will see Ozil again at the World Cup.
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“It just shows that Mesut, despite not playing, is with the team, and is there for us,” Reus said.
“He’s just an extremely important player for us. He’s one of the best players in the world, and I am more than convinced we’ll see him in this tournament again.”
Ozil was dropped for the Sweden clash which Germany ended up winning 2-1 with a last-gasp winner from Reus.
It was the first time the 29-year-old has been dropped for a fixture at a major tournament and there are concerns that he may struggle to win his place back in the team.
There have been rumors of a rift in the Germany national team camp but Reus believes they are united.
“We are one team, on and off the pitch, no matter what they say,” he said.
Ozil is reported to be in a group dubbed the ‘Bling-bling gang’ in the Sport Bild. Sami Khedira, Jerome Boateng and Julian Draxler are also reportedly members.
In the other major group in the national team squad is the Bavarians who are made up of Manuel Neuer, Mats Hummels, Thomas Müller and Toni Kroos.
The ‘Bling-bling gang’ are reportedly upset the Bavarians did not do more to influence Germany boss Joachim Low over calling Leroy Sane to the squad.
Germany play their final World Cup Group F group game against South Korea on Wednesday.
