German Muslim footballer Mesut Ozil kisses bread thrown at him by Atletico Madrid fans
Mesut Ozil,a German Muslim footballer , kissed a piece of bread thrown at him by Atletico Madrid fans.
The inicident happened during Arsenal's 1-1 draw with the Spaniards in the Europa League semi-final at the Emirates.
The piece of bread was thrown when he was preparing to take a corner kick.
Instead of kicking it away, he did an unexpected thing because it is against Muslim culture to waste any food.
Mesut Ozil picked it up, kissed and placed it on his forehead. Ozil, a third-generation Turkish-German he is a practicing Muslim and recites from the Holy Quran before his matches.
In one of his interviews, Ozil had said, "I always do that before I go out .
I pray and my teammates know that they cannot talk to me during this brief period."
He observes fasting during the Islamic month of Ramadan, but he has admitted that: "Because of my job I cannot follow Ramadan properly. I do it only the few days I can, only when I have a free day. But other than that it's impossible, because you have to drink and eat a lot to stay at peak fitness."
In May 2016, he performed Umrah.
-
Alejandro Kirk injury concern grows as Blue Jays await X-ray results after his exit
-
Patrick Corbin joins Blue Jays on $1 million contract after improved 2025 season
-
Bruins vs Panthers: Bobrovsky shines as Florida end Boston streak in tight NHL clash
-
Canucks vs Wild: Boldy and Kaprizov lead Minnesota to playoffs as Vancouver end season at the bottom
-
Capitals vs Devils: Jack Hughes shines with five points as devils cruise past capitals
-
OKC thrash Lakers as Luka Doncic exits with hamstring issue ahead of MRI scan
-
Vancouver Canucks call up Ty Mueller from Abbotsford as season nears end
-
Avalanche star Nathan MacKinnon reaches 50 goals milestone as Canucks win thriller
-
Colorado Avalanche injury update: Cale Makar to miss time with upper-body injury ahead of playoffs
-
Canadiens vs Lightning: Montreal extend winning streak as Caulfield and Slavkovsky shine
-
Max Scherzer shines as Blue Jays beat Rockies with strong outing and late offensive surge
-
Canada vs Tunisia game halted as Ralph Priso exits early with apparent injury