German-Turkish football player center of a new controversy after raising his voice for Uighurs in China

Tarkan Tufan/ DUVAR

Mesut Özil was born in the German city of Gelsenkirchen on October 15, 1988. His professional football career began with the Schalke 04 squad, and while playing with the Werder Bremen team in 2010, he attracted serious attention as the star midfielder of the German national team in the FIFA World Cup. Prior to being transferred to England's Arsenal in 2013, he achieved international success during the seasons he played with Real Madrid. 

Özil is one of four children born to Mustafa and Gülizar Özil, a Turkish family who emigrated to Germany from the Turkish Black Sea province of Zonguldak. He developed his skills playing football with his friends on the field in the neighborhood where he spent his childhood. Özil, a German citizen and a man of faith, similarly to former teammate Christiano Ronaldo has made a number of large donations to a number of charitable organizations. He donated the entirety of a six-figure bonus that he earned from the 2014 World Cup so that 23 children in Brazil could receive life-saving medical treatment, and due to this he received the Laureus award. 

A quickly-rising star 

After playing for a couple neighborhood football teams during his early years, in 2005 he joined Gelsenkirchen's well-known Schalke 04 club, and became the youngest member of Germany's national team in 2006. In spite of his promising skills, in 2008 he was transferred to Werner Bremen. The midfielder played a major role in Werner Bremen winning the 2009 DFB Cup and the DFL Super Cup, developing himself even more at his new club with his flawless ball control and creative organization.

For the goal he scored while wearing the German national team uniform during the 2009 U-21 Europe Championship, he received the 'Best Player of the Match' award. In the finale victory against England, he also contributed two assists. After Özil was selected to the 2010 FIFA World Cup squad, his rise continued and he brought all of his skills to the table. Özil clinched a goal in the championship, and assisted several goals that ensured Germany a third-pace finish, earning a place among ten candidates for the tournament's Golden Ball Award. 

Reaching the summit at Real Madrid and Arsenal 

The performance that he showed on the field transformed Özil from a player showing promise into a star. Özil, who achieved great success internationally, also made history as the first immigrant-origin player to join the German national team. Özil's shining talents caught the attention of a number of top-level German clubs. After joining Spain's Real Madrid in 2010, together with Cristiano Ronaldo Özil helped clinch a league championship as well as victories in the Copa Del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup, establishing himself as an undeniable superstar. 

Özil's transfer in 2013 to the well-established English club Arsenal made headlines worldwide. Thanks to the wealth of Özil as a playmaker, Arsenal set its sights as returning to the status of one of Europe's elite teams. During the 2014-2015 season, Özil scored five goals and recorded seven assists in 31 matches for Arsenal. In the 2015 FA Cup final he put on a total show. In a match that Arsenal won 3-0 against Manchester United, he scored his first goal of the 2015-2016 season. Through the course of this third season with Arsenal, he maintained his success with eight goals and 20 assists, winning the Arsenal player of the year award. Due to this creative performance at Arsenal, the club won the FA Cup during the 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 seasons, repeating this victory in 2016-2017. 

As he quickly rose to fame in his career, Mesut Özil won a number of awards and was the candidate to receive many awards as well. For three years in a row, he clinched the title of Germany's Player of the Year. 

Putting an end to a tumultuous love life, Özil married 2014 Miss Turkey winner and model/actress Amine Gülse in June of this year. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan attended the wedding ceremony. While reaching serenity in his personal life, due to the commitment towards and success in his career Özil has gained considerable fortune. His estimated wealth is in the $50 million range. Apart from football, he has earned money from sponsorships and advertisements for major companies. 

Arsenal's star player once again made the headlines last week due to posts he made on social media and ensuing statements. Özil, who condemned the silence of the Muslim world regarding the persecution of the Uighurs in China, was the target of harsh criticism from the Chinese government as a result. In response to this, human rights organizations like Amnesty International and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo showed their support for Özil.

Though the Chinese government's decades-long persecution of the Uighurs in the Xinjiang region has become an item on the global news agenda, due to Beijing's close economic ties with Turkey and countries in the Arab world, the Muslim word has not shown a reaction. According to experts in the United Nations, due to the Uighurs ethnic and religious identities, they have been treated as enemies of the state and the people of the region have suffered great injustices. 

Recently-leaked official documents show new proof that more than one million Uighur Muslims have been exposed to systematic oppression in concentration camps. This figure accounts for the largest detainment of an ethnic or religious minority since World War II. Özil's post paved the way for a wave of anger in the media and social media platforms that are under the control of the Chinese state. The Chinese Football federation accused the Arsenal star of hurting the feelings of the Chinese people while the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs chimed in with a statement saying Özil was deceived by fake news. 

In order to appease China, Arsenal released a statement in which it said that Özil's remarks were his own personal views and that Arsenal is an apolitical organization. Meanwhile, Özil's fan pages were banned in China, while images surfaced in the country of Özil's jersey being set on fire. Nevertheless, Özil's remarks were successful in once again shedding light on China's persecution of more than one million Uighurs. 

While Özil's comments caused panic for Arsenal, who earns large amounts of revenue from match broadcasts and jersey sales in China and as such distanced themselves from his remarks, Özil nevertheless received support from Amnesty International, who said that the world needs more people like him, as well as from his former technical director Arsene Wenger, who supported the star's right to freely express his opinon.