El Clasico has gone down because of Barcelona – Ozil

Former Real Madrid midfielder Mesut Ozil has claimed that El Clasico has gone down because of Barcelona.

Ozil said this ahead of Real Madrid’s La Liga El Clasico with Barcelona on Sunday.

Speaking with Marca, the former Arsenal star said Barcelona have lost potential.

“At that time, it was the most important match in world football. Unfortunately for us, Pep’s Barça was perhaps the best Barça in history. It was at another level, certainly different from today’s Barça,” Ozil said.

“I think that right now worldwide attention is more focused on games like Liverpool-Manchester City or other Premier League duels. Here, I think the Clásico has gone down and that’s a shame.”

Ozil added: “But that’s not Real Madrid’s fault, as they are undoubtedly one of the best teams in the world. The problem is Barça, who have lost potential. Barcelona are struggling; they are trying. They have good players in all positions, but they have had too many injuries this season and maybe they should look a bit more at themselves and their mistakes and stop complaining about the referees all the time.”