Eurosport - Tue, 16 Jun 13:26:00 2009
Arsenal, Manchester City and Juventus have been linked with Mesut Oezil so we take a look at the Germany U21 playmaker in his side's goalless European Championship draw with Spain.
Throughout the European U21 Championship we will be compiling scouting reports on some of the continent's biggest talents.
Germany U21 playmaker Oezil plays for Werder Bremen and his favoured position is in the hole behind the strikers but he is happy to pull out wide and seems comfortable in an even more advanced role.
He moved to Bremen from Schalke in January 2008 a £4.3 million deal and it is almost unthinkable that the Gelsenkirchen club should let such a talent go so cheaply.
Like Mehmet Schoell and Yildiray Basturk, he is of Turkish descent and is a similar type of player, with superb close control and clever movement off the ball.
The best player on the park, Bremen playmaker forward Oezil tore his opponents to shreds with some magical dribbling and quick-witted runs but was unable to find a finish to match his excellent build-up play.
Key moments:
34' - Runs into space on the left and latches on to a Manuel Neuer long-throw. Races to the byline, wriggles past two defenders and fires in a shot from an impossible angle that Sergio Asenjo parries.
45' - A clever run off the ball allows team-mate Marko Marin a clean run at goal. Marin hits a shot off the outside of the post.
50' - Gets in down the right and cuts back an inch-perfect ball to Ashkan Dejagah who fires over.
62' - Dejagah races clear down the left and slides the ball in to Oezil, who rounds Asenjo but is denied by a superb save from the Spain keeper.
80' - Springs the offside trap to run clean through but Asenjo again makes a top save.
Dribbling - 9/10
Pace - 8/10
Movement - 9/10
Passing - 7/10
Finishing - 5/10
Approximate value: £12m
Proposed destinations: Manchester City, Manchester United, Bayern Munich, Liverpool
OTHER NOTABLE PLAYERS IN ACTION
ENGLAND (vs Finland)
Michael Mancienne: The defender had a terrible game before he was sent off for a professional foul just after the half-hour.
The young Chelsea defender is weighing up whether to play back-up at Stamford Bridge or go on loan and, on his showing, he should plump for the latter in an attempt to gain more experience.
He was shown a straight red card for pulling down Berat Sadik after letting the ball bounce and will be banned for at least one more of England's two remaining group matches.
Mancienne did not look comfortable with the aerial side of the game and for now may be better used at full-back.
Fraizer Campbell: Campbell came on as a half-time sub for a poor Theo Walcott and showed a few good touches and some clever movement without truly testing Finland.
Set to join Hull City from Manchester United, he was not helped by his side being down to 10 men and will probably start against Spain on Thursday.
FINLAND (vs England)
Teemu Pukki: The Sevilla attacking midfielder came on as a second-half sub and, while he looked bright, had a limited effect and was booked.
SPAIN (vs Germany)
Bojan Krkic: Star attraction Bojan drifted in and out of the game and did not test Germany keeper Manuel Neuer.
The Barcelona man was ineffectual and came off later in the match, he is reported to be uncomfortable with the long spells away from home that international football demands.
Diego Capel: The Sevilla winger came on with 20 minutes remaining and, while he was prepared to run at people, his contribution was limited: he miscontrolled the ball, fell over a few times and gave away a free-kick.
Raul Garcia: Performing a decent job in central midfield, the Spain captain has good range of passing and is tough in the tackle.
The Atletico Madrid man could have ventured forward more though and seemed reluctant to shoot.
Sergio Asenjo: The Valladolid shot-stopper made two world-class saves from Mesut Oezil and was excellent throughout.
He has been linked to Atletico Madrid and is the latest in a seemingly endless line of Spaniard with excellent reflexes.
GERMANY (vs Spain)
Manuel Neuer: The Schalke keeper was tested early in the match and did his job to good effect with one great save, smothering Chico from close range after a ricochet played the Spain defender in.
Otherwise looked a safe pair of hands.
Marko Marin: Provided decent support to Oezil but drifted out of the game at times.
The Borussia Moenchengladbach forward hit the outside of the post with one first-half effort but was outshone by Oezil.
Comment 1 - 2 of 2
Giovanni T, You need to read the article again.
It really is unthinkable that the GELSENKIRCHEN club (ie Schalke) would let such a talent go (to Bremen) so cheaply (the 4.3mil Bremen paid).
So Basturk was...as the article states...of Turkish decent.
You say "it is almost unthinkable that the Gelsenkirchen club...": he plays for Bremen now! Concerning Basturk: he is not just of Turkish origin, he played for Turkey!
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