‘I remember’: Ferdinand claims Cristiano Ronaldo ‘wasn’t happy’ with £42m Arsenal transfer

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Mesut Ozil signed for Arsenal in 2013 from Real Madrid.

Rio Ferdinand has claimed on his personal Instagram account that Cristiano Ronaldo ‘wasn’t happy’ with Mesut Ozil leaving Real Madrid for Arsenal in 2013 and how he seemingly hasn’t been the same player since.  

The former defender shared how Ozil was ‘aggressive’ and ‘strong’ when he played against him during the German’s days in Spain, but he believes he hasn’t shown those qualities at Arsenal.  

Ozil moved to Arsenal from the Bernabeu in 2013 when he made a £42 million switch to the Emirates Stadium [BBC Sport]. 

Ferdinand, who played against Ozil when he was at Manchester United, shared the difference in the Ozil at Madrid and the Ozil at Arsenal. 

“I just think back to when I played against Ozil when he was at Real Madrid in the Champions League,” Ferdinand told his Instagram followers. “And he played against a young Rafael, right-back, Brazilian boy. 

“He was tenacious. Strong. Aggressive. Fast. And Rafael won’t thank me for this but he played that game and a couple of times he ran Rafa. I thought ‘I didn’t realise Ozil was that fast’. He worked back. He chased Rafa back. Rafa was running across the halfway line with the ball trying to attack. He chased him back. He worked. 

“When he got it. He was just elusive. The balance. His passing. Running and playing it aggressively without the ball. Now, I haven’t really seen him play like that for Arsenal. He plays differently. He plays more calm and chilled and at a slower pace. But I know there’s something in there. I saw it. I witnessed it. I played against it where he could up the tempo and he has got an engine. 

“I remember Cristiano Ronaldo was not happy that he was leaving. I remember. The assists he was providing. The opportunities and chances for Cristiano. And I remember he weren’t happy.”

One thing that has always been aimed at Ozil in a negative light has been his lack of ability to dig in during the most difficult moments, especially away from home. 

At Madrid, he possessed a great ability to make the ball talk whichever way he wanted in the final third, and he did bring that with him to the Emirates, but it seems as though he had lost the aggressive side of his game. 

Added with that, during the past few years, his career at the Emirates has been turning sour, but with the arrival of Mikel Arteta, he is trying to turn him back onto the right track.