Zidane tells Oezil to be himself

Real Madrid’s Mesut Oezil says the club’s sporting director Zinedine Zidane is keen to let him ‘play his own game’.

The German international playmaker joined the Spanish giants from Werder Bremen last year and quickly developed into an important first-team member at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Although he has been less impressive in the opening months of the 2011/12 campaign, he is pleased to still have Zidane’s support.

“I often speak with Zidane. He tells me all the time: ‘Mesut, you know what you’re capable of. Go out there on the pitch and play your own game, just do your own thing out there’,” Oezil told Kicker.

The 23-year-old faces stiff competition from resurgent Brazilian international Kaka for a starting berth, but he remains confident in his own abilities.

“Kaka is doing very well at the moment. So I don’t play every single game. Jose Mourinho has explained that whoever is doing a good job is playing,” he said.

“We have a lot of big names in the team and they all want to play. I want the same thing, though. I am very happy to be part of this Madrid and want to stay put for many years.”