I played with Cristiano Ronaldo but 'genius' Real Madrid star was 'special'

The ex-Germany midfielder, who spent five years at Real Madrid before moving to Juventus, played with superstars including Cristiano Ronaldo, but admitted to being wowed by his national teammate.

Khedira, now one of the most-renowned football analysts in Germany, revealed that Mesut Ozil was a 'special' player at Real Madrid, in an interview with Spanish outlet Marca.

"Everyone thinks it's Cristiano [Ronaldo]. For winning matches, it's definitely Cristiano, because he never failed, he was always there. If we needed a goal, give the ball to Cristiano," Khedira told Spanish outlet Marca.

"But, the most special player in my view is Mesut Ozil and his departure is why. The day Ozil left, we were all saying to Florentino [president of Real Madrid], 'but why are you selling him?'

"We were all saying it, [Karim] Benzema, Cristiano, [Sergio] Ramos. Ozil was an absolute genius, he was a real magician.

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"I played behind him and you gave him a bad pass and he controlled the ball with such ease. I have never seen a player with that class and that quality, really" Khedira added.

"Ozil had that potential. And although he had a great career, it would have been different at Madrid. I told him it was a big mistake to leave Madrid because he had it all here. The [Santiago] Bernabeu loved him, he played like an angel.

"He played like Zidane. My idol was Zizou [Zidane] and if you get the two of them up on YouTube and watch their control, Mesut was like Zidane".

Khedira was also asked on whether he thought Jose Mourinho - who he played under from 2010-2013 at Real Madrid - was the best example of leadership, to which he said: "It's not about good or bad, but one style. On one hand, being a leader is a lifestyle and not something you can copy.

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"You can't copy Mourinho, [Pep] Guardiola, [Jurgen] Klopp or [Carlo] Ancelotti. You have to take note on what each of them does to improve, but also you have to be yourself to be a natural leader."

Khedira also revealed that he currently is studying towards becoming a sporting director.

Khedira also admitted that he was 'open to anything' when it comes to working in football, saying: "Germany is my country, but I love Spain, I spend a lot of time in England, I love the football there.

"But I also have a lot of love for Italy, I'm open to anything and don't want to limit myself to one place because football is a global sport."

On the world of coaching, Khedira said he likes the idea, adding: "The most important thing is understanding the game and then communicating well with the athletes.

"I'm studying a lot [to be a leader], but then you have to put it into practice. We'll see how this goes."

Ozil retired from football in March 2023 after recurrent injuries, ending his career at Istanbul Basaksehir in the Turkish Super Lig.

He ended his career with 92 caps for Germany and 23 goals at international level.

Some of his career honours included the 2014 World Cup, four FA Cup titles with Arsenal and a Spanish title with Real Madrid.

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