Germany head coach Joachim Loew has refused to rule out the involvement of Mesut Ozil during the latter stages of the summer World Cup. The Arsenal star was hugely criticised following his average showing during the shock 1-0 defeat to Mexico and this witnessed him being benched for the 2-1 triumph over Sweden.
As such, there have been suggestions that Ozil may no longer command a significant role at the tournament but Loew has seemingly denied the claims by suggesting that the 29-year-old can still make an influence, he said: “We have strong competition with us in the squad. We will still need his creativity in the tournament.”
Ozil was expected to at least come off the bench during the Sweden game but Loew chose to go with Mario Gomez and Julian Brandt during the second half where they made a rather miraculous comeback. Germany recovered from their first half deficit with an early Reus goal after the break but they were nevertheless looking destined to share the spoils until the dying minutes of the match.
Towards the end, Swede had placed much of their emphasis on the defensive part of their game but Toni Kroos managed to score off a stunning free-kick in the 95th minute to keep Germany’s destiny in their own hands. The reigning champions now face South Korea during the final game of their group and based on recent results, they should secure a convincing win over the Asian giants to secure their berth in the knockout stage.
Meanwhile, it remains uncertain whether Ozil could reclaim his spot in the German lineup but based on Loew’s preference, it would not come as a surprise if the midfielder returns to the first XI in the upcoming matches. Ozil had started in 26 consecutive games for Germany at major tournaments prior to his axe versus Sweden.