Arsenal playmaker Mesut Özil has revealed that he enjoys the multiculturalism at the club.
“I have lived overseas for a few years now. I enjoy it, because it gives me the chance to learn other languages. When the players speak Spanish, I understand it. Then there are others speaking French or English,” Özil told DW.
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Özil underlined that it is a great experience playing with footballers from so many different countries and that everybody respects each others differences at the club.
“It’s really a great thing, when there are so many different cultures in the one team. The best thing is that we are respectful with each other. We all enjoy the experience together,” he added.
Several language other than English are spoken by Arsenal players including Portuguese, Polish, Japanese, French and Czech.
Özil is bi-lingual in Turkish and German and also speaks Spanish as well as English.
The 26-year-old is no stranger to living in a multicultural environment as he is from a Turkish family but grew up in Germany in an area with a diverse ethnic mix.
The World Cup winner’s family originate from Devrek in Zonguldak, Turkey but he grew up in Gelsenkirchen, Germany.