Mesut Ozil is convinced Fenerbahce team-mate Arda Guler is on track to become a world-class footballer as Premier League giants Arsenal and Liverpool scout the Turkish sensation, speaking via Sporx.
An elegant, left-footed playmaker of Turkish descent, you can see why 17-year-old Guler has been likened to Fenerbahce’s World Cup-winning former Real Madrid superstar.
And Turkey’s teen sensation went some way to justifying those comparisons during March’s 5-2 thumping of Alanyaspor.
Not content with opening his account in senior football with a smart volley, a gorgeous assist was the icing on the cake.
“A super goal and a super assist. Quality,” Ozil said after Guler’s breakthrough performance a couple of weeks ago.
“You will be a world star.”
Is Arda Guler a future Premier League ace?
More performances like the one in Alanya and Guler could soon be following in Ozil’s footsteps. According to Fanatik, Premier League giants Arsenal and Liverpool sent scouts to watch the Turkish youth international in action during Sunday’s colossal Super Lig clash between Fenerbahce and Galatasaray in the capital.
The only problem was, Guler played a grand total of six minutes off the bench as Fener cruised to a 2-0 Istanbul derby victory over their crisis-hit visitors.
“I don’t think Arda will stay in Turkey too long,” Erol Tokgozler, Guler’s former coach at Genclerbirligi, told CNN Turk in March. “I know that there are offers from Arsenal and Bayern Munich.
“With each passing match, the number of these (interested) teams will increase. 20 to 30 million euros for Arda will be very ordinary (bids).”
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta forced Ozil out the door at the Emirates. But he has succeeded in building an exciting Gunners side around a crop of highly talented youngsters, a la Guler.
Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard, Kieran Tierney, Aaron Ramsdale, Albert Sambi Lokonga and Emile Smith Rowe have all featured regularly throughout 2021/22.
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