REVEALED: The moment Ozil crushed Wenger's dream

Arsene Wenger has revealed details of the phone call in which Mesut Ozil crushed his hopes of signing him from Werder Bremen back in 2010.

After starring at the World Cup in South Africa with Germany, Ozil opted to sign for Real Madrid who were then managed by Wenger’s main adversary Jose Mourinho.

Wenger eventually got his man in a club record £42 million deal three years later but admits he still regrets missing out on him in the first place.

“He [Ozil] called me and said ‘sorry, I’ve chosen Real Madrid’. I said ‘ok, I wish you luck,’ said Wenger, recalling his failed bit to sign him.

“When I heard about the opportunity to get him out of Real Madrid of course I was keen. This time it worked.”

After a couple of indifferent seasons Ozil, by his own admission, is currently in the form of his life and leads the Premier League assists and chances created charts.

The 27-year-old was in sublime form again on Wednesday evening as Arsenal booked their place in the last 16 of the Champions League against the odds with a 3-0 win at Olympiacos and Wenger made a unique comparison between Ozil and a musician.

“He’s intelligent. Mesut is like a musician who always plays the right notes at the right moment. When he has to give the ball he gives the ball,” Wenger told the club website.

“He got out of impossible situations, but it was not forced individually – the team play was always in front of his ego. That strikes you because when players are usually talented that’s not the first quality you see.”