Revealed: Why Real Madrid sold Mesut Ozil to Arsenal

Signing Mesut Ozil has been accused of tiring himself out sleeping with beauties to such an extent that Spanish giants Real Madrid couldn’t wait to sell him.

The 24-year-old, who moved to Arsenal for £42.5million on deadline day, was asked by Real Madrid to put his footballing career first after becoming besotted with ex-Miss Venezuela Aida Yespica, according to Spanish newspaper El Mundo.

Ozil is reported to have flown to Italy at every chance to be with the 31-year-old model in Milan or with her at hotels in Paris. He is thought to have forked out £15,000 every couple seeks for a private plane, which would bring him to Yespica. El Mundo reported: “The early morning trips, extended to the last minute of passion, led to a down which affected his performances.”

His new girlfriend Many Capristo is thought to want to move to the UK to be beside him, but the Sun on Sunday report that she has rejected the advice to find a place near Hertfordshire’s training ground. Capristo is set to be a glamorous addition to Britain’s collection of footballing WAGs — with her pop star background leading to the couple being dubbed ‘the German Posh and Becks’. Ozil, who is of Turkish ancestry, is a devout Muslim, but his girlfriend has become a celebrity in Germany thanks to her flamboyant musical performances and participation in a dancing-themed TV show.

Elsewhere, Ozil has claimed that he would have joined new club Arsenal “for free” following the trust and respect that Arsene Wenger showed in him that he clearly felt he lacked at Real Madrid. The 24-year-old signed for the Gunners in a £42.5m deadline day deal after claiming he was “forced out” by the Spanish club, who were looking to recoup a portion of the reported £86m they spent on Gareth Bale.

In an interview with German newspaper Die Welt, Ozil admitted that Wenger called him personally to convince the attacking midfielder that he should join the Gunners, while speaking in perfect German. “In some way, that conversation flicked a switch in me and made me realize what I had lost at Madrid — transparency, trust, respect,” Ozil explained. “He told me exactly how he saw me, how he wanted to use me and what he expected of me.

“I would have even joined Arsenal for free,” he claimed. Ozil is likely to make his debut for the north London club when they travel to the Stadium of Light to take on Sunderland next Saturday, before they head to France to face Marseille in their opening Champions League encounter. He is already looking beyond that though, having previously expressed his determination to bring

Silverware back to the Emirates, and claims that he hasn’t made the move to miss out on success. “We will do everything we can to get as far as possible in all competitions,” he said. ‘I learned that at Real. “I don’t go into any competition say: The target is the semi-final or the final. When I play, I want to win. Ozil featured in Germany’s comfortable 3-0 victory over Austria on Friday that reaffirmed their place at the top of Group C.

— Agencies