Mesut Ozil ruled out for 12 weeks with knee injury; ...unlikely to play again until 2015

Mesut Özil has been ruled out for 10-12 weeks after an MRI scan on his injured knee confirmed the Arsenal midfielder has damaged ligaments in his left knee.

Özil missed training with the German national team on Wednesday ahead of their Euro 2016 qualifiers against Poland and Republic of Ireland after meeting up with Joachim Löw’s squad in Frankfurt. He was sent for the scan under the supervision of team doctor Hans-Wilhelm Müller-Wohlfahrt on Wednesday after playing the full 90 minutes of the 2-0 defeat to Chelsea on Sunday.

Özil reportedly first felt the injury during the game at Stamford Bridge but was determined to play through the pain. He reported the problem to Arsenal’s medical staff afterwards and they instructed Germany’s dcotors to take a closer look after linking up with Joachim Löw’s squad.

However, a statement from the German Football Association’s (DFB) official Twitter feed confirmed that the 25-year-old is unlikely to play again this year.

“BREAKING: @MesutOzil1088 out for 10-12 weeks with partial lateral collateral ligament tear in left knee. More to follow... Get well soon!”

Özil is now expected to return to London for Arsenal’s medical staff to make their own assessment. He was absent for a month in March with a hamstring strain and also missed Germany’s opening qualifier against Scotland in August with an ankle problem. 

Credit: theGuardian/Javier Garcia