Mesut Ozil
Reuters

Mesut Ozil has praised Jose Mourinho for his work at Real Madrid but insists that his allegiance lies with Arsene Wenger following his transfer to north London.

The midfielder transferred from Spain for a club record fee of £42.5m last summer and has had a transforming effect on the Arsenal team. The 25-year-old has accumulated the most assists in the league so far and is looking good to increase his tally as the league wears on. He has also notched up two goals, more recently against Hull City where he got on the end of a brilliant pass from Aaron Ramsey.

Hailed as among the best playmakers in the world, his contribution has had a profound effect on an Arsenal team currently top of the league and on the cusp of progressing to the group stages of the Champions League.

However, when asked about his decision to leave Madrid for a team who have not won anything in eight years, Ozil told the Guardian: "I had long conversations with Wenger before I joined Real and that's how I got to know about Arsenal, and the way that they like to sign talented players who can move the ball well. That's really important for me.

"In the end, I did decide to go to Real and I had three wonderful years there. I had a great manager in José Mourinho, who really helped me. He was always there when I needed him.

"I'm really proud to be here now and the most important thing was the trust that the boss put in me. He convinced me to sign and I could not be any happier to be here. This has really been the perfect step for me. Wenger is one of the best managers. This is why we are so successful and why we are on a good path," he said.

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