Ozil to miss Saudi Arabia friendly with ‘minor’ knee injury

Mesut Ozil will miss his country’s final World Cup preparation match against Saudi Arabia with a “minor” knee injury, the German Football Association (DFB) has confirmed.

Ozil scored Germany’s goal in a 2-1 defeat to Austria on Saturday, but has since struggled with a bruised knee.

It has been reported that the Arsenal man has missed four days of training as a result.

While some sections of the media have suggested Ozil is a doubt for Germany’s World Cup opener against Mexico on June 17, an announcement from the DFB stated his absence from Friday’s game is simply “precautionary”.

As a precaution, @MesutOzil1088 didn’t take part in final training today, completing running exercises instead. He is out of #GERKSA with a minor bruise to his left knee.#DieMannschaft #ZSMMN pic.twitter.com/9iV8vl9rZD

— Germany (@DFB_Team_EN) June 7, 2018

After facing Mexico, Germany will also play against Sweden and South Korea in Russia, as they aim to defend their World Cup title.