Ozil's most shocking confessions: Mourinho row, calling out racism & more

Mesut Ozil has been one of the most elegant players to grace LaLiga Santander in recent times.

He's enjoyed plenty of success at club and international level throughout his career, but he's also made plenty of enemies along the way.

These are his most shocking quotes, from Jose Mourinho to his father, from Sergio Ramos to the German Football Federation.

1. He almost gave up football for table tennis

Ozil is one of the classiest players we've seen on a football pitch in the modern era, but all that almost never happened.

"I was good at table tennis. I played at school when I was 11 or 12. I gave up football for three months and beat everyone in my first tournament.

"I was really nervous but also happy and thankful because Real Madrid were such a big club. I'd dreamed of playing there because my idol Zinedine Zidane did.

"When you're new to the dressing room, you're a bit quiet and nervous because of the great players that have been at that great club. I was especially nervous when I met Zidane, that was a big moment for me.

"It's no secret. My heart beats for Real Madrid. I played there and I've still got lots of friends from the team and the club."

4. Falling out with Mourinho

Mourinho's last season at Real Madrid was defined by a war within the dressing room. The coach was supported by a small group of players, while there were those that opposed him, like Sergio Ramos, Iker Casillas and Ozil. At half-time in a match against Deportivo La Coruna, it all kicked off.

Ozil quoted the conversation he had with Jose in his book:

Ramos' gesture

In a show of support for Ozil, Ramos took the German's shirt and wore it underneath his during the second half. It didn't do much more than split the dressing room even further.

5. Ozil's father vs Florentino Perez

"Ozil blames his father for his Real Madrid exit and, in an attempt to break ties with his father, he closed his Twitter account.

Leaving Real Madrid was the hardest decision of my life. I dreamed of winning the Champions League with Madrid. My time hadn't finished.

"My father isn't perfect and the negotiations were big for him. It wasn't greed, we asked for what we considered fair and they didn't give it to us. It's not the best thing to be stubborn with Florentino.

"In an attack of rage, he even closed my Twitter account and I lost millions of fans. The break-up wasn’t nice, and it even went to court because of an Adidas commission."

6. Leaving the national team because of racism

After posing for a picture with Turkish president Recep Erdogan, Ozil received criticism from the German Football Federation. He accused the Federation of being racist and announced that he would be leaving the national team after the 2018 World Cup.

"I'm German when we win, an immigrant when we lose.

"With a heavy heart, and after really considering recent events, I won't continue playing with the German national team because I've felt this racism and lack of respect. I've worn the German shirt with pride, but no longer.

"Bosses at the German Federation have treated me with a lack of respect towards my Turkish roots and have unfairly accused me of political propaganda, so enough is enough. Racism should never, ever be acceptable.

"I have two hearts: one German and one Turkish. I was born and educated in Germany. Why are there some people that still don't accept that I'm German?"