The German Football Association (DFB) on Monday rejected claims of racism made by midfielder Mesut Ozil regarding their president Reinhard Grindel.
On Sunday, Ozil announced his retirement from the Germany national team in a lengthy statement released on social media, which accused Grindel of racism, when he broke his silence over his controversial meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in May.
"In the eyes of Grindel and his supporters, I am German when we win, but I am an immigrant when we lose," said Ozil, who accused Grindel of failing to side with him against his critics.
Ozil, who was born in Germany but has Turkish heritage, ended his statement with "racism should never, ever be accepted".
The DFB have responded to Ozil's claims while expressing their regret that the Arsenal midfielder has stepped down from national duty.
"We reject the notion that the DFB is associated with racism," read a statement. "The DFB stands for diversity, from the representatives at the top to the boundless, day-to-day dedication of people at the base.
"The DFB is very grateful to Mesut Ozil for his outstanding performance in the jersey of the German national teams," continued the statement.
"It is regrettable that Mesut Ozil felt that he had not been sufficiently protected as a target of racist slogans.
"But it was important that Mesut Ozil, like Ilkay Gundogan before him, gives answers to the photo [with Erdogan].
"In the DFB, we win and lose together, as a team. The DFB would have been happy if Mesut Ozil had wanted to remain part of the team on this shared basis. He decided otherwise."
The statement was released hours after Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness launched a scathing attack on Mesut Ozil, claiming the midfielder had been "playing like dirt for years" for the Germany team.
Reacting to Ozil's statement, Bayern president Hoeness said he is happy to see the back of the 29-year-old, who was part of the Germany squad that was eliminated in the group stages of the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
"I'm glad it is over. He's been playing dirt for years," Hoeness is quoted as saying by Sky Sports. "He last won a tackle before the 2014 World Cup. And now he hides himself and his [rubbish] performance behind this photo.
"His 35 million follower boys, who of course do not exist in the real world, think he has played excellently if he plays a cross to a man."
Hoeness also said that Bayern deliberately single out Ozil as a weak link of the Arsenal side when the two teams face each other in the Uefa Champions League. Ozil has only been on the winning side twice in 17 matches against the Bundesliga champions.
"Whenever we played against Arsenal, we played over him, because we know he's the weak point", Hoeness said.
Ozil, who was a member of the Germany side that won the 2014 World Cup, made 92 appearances for the national team.
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Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
The specs
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Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
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The Lowdown
Kesari
Rating: 2.5/5 stars
Produced by: Dharma Productions, Azure Entertainment
Directed by: Anubhav Singh
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Parineeti Chopra
Omar Yabroudi's factfile
Born: October 20, 1989, Sharjah
Education: Bachelor of Science and Football, Liverpool John Moores University
2010: Accrington Stanley FC, internship
2010-2012: Crystal Palace, performance analyst with U-18 academy
2012-2015: Barnet FC, first-team performance analyst/head of recruitment
2015-2017: Nottingham Forest, head of recruitment
2018-present: Crystal Palace, player recruitment manager
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
Traits of Chinese zodiac animals
Tiger:independent, successful, volatile
Rat:witty, creative, charming
Ox:diligent, perseverent, conservative
Rabbit:gracious, considerate, sensitive
Dragon:prosperous, brave, rash
Snake:calm, thoughtful, stubborn
Horse:faithful, energetic, carefree
Sheep:easy-going, peacemaker, curious
Monkey:family-orientated, clever, playful
Rooster:honest, confident, pompous
Dog:loyal, kind, perfectionist
Boar:loving, tolerant, indulgent
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Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
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Various Artists
Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Engine: 4-litre V8 twin-turbo
Power: 630hp
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: 8-speed Tiptronic automatic
Price: From Dh599,000
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Kanguva
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Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
The specs
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UAE - India ties
The UAE is India’s third-largest trade partner after the US and China
Annual bilateral trade between India and the UAE has crossed US$ 60 billion
The UAE is the fourth-largest exporter of crude oil for India
Indians comprise the largest community with 3.3 million residents in the UAE
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi first visited the UAE in August 2015
His visit on August 23-24 will be the third in four years
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, visited India in February 2016
Sheikh Mohamed was the chief guest at India’s Republic Day celebrations in January 2017
Modi will visit Bahrain on August 24-25
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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JERSEY INFO
Red Jersey
General Classification: worn daily, starting from Stage 2, by the leader of the General Classification by time.
Green Jersey
Points Classification: worn daily, starting from Stage 2, by the fastest sprinter, who has obtained the best positions in each stage and intermediate sprints.
White Jersey
Young Rider Classification: worn daily, starting from Stage 2, by the best young rider born after January 1, 1995 in the overall classification by time (U25).
Black Jersey
Intermediate Sprint Classification: worn daily, starting from Stage 2, by the rider who has gained the most Intermediate Sprint Points.
