MADRID // Midfielder Mesut Ozil has become the second member of Germany's third-place World Cup squad to move to Real Madrid. Madrid said today it had agreed to a deal with Werder Bremen for Ozil, subject to a medical tomorrow. Werder and Madrid confirmed the deal, but gave no details. Ozil was traveling immediately to Madrid. "We are respecting Mesut's wish to make the next step in his career," the Werder business manager Klaus Allofs said.
The 21-year-old midfielder will join Germany teammate Sami Khedira at Madrid under its new coach Jose Mourinho. Khedira formerly played for Stuttgart. The move had been expected, and media in both countries have said Madrid made an improved offer for the son of Turkish immigrants after Werder rejected the initial bid as inadequate. Ozil arrived in Bremen in January 2008 from Schalke. He won the German Cup in 2009 with Werder and scored 12 goals in 71 games.
Although he could have played for Turkey, Ozil chose to represent Germany and was a prominent member of Joachim Loew's young team that exceeded expectations by finishing third at the World Cup in South Africa. Ozil is expected to help Madrid overcome the four-month absence of Brazil midfielder Kaka after a knee operation. * AP