Mesut Ozil joins venture capital fund as strategic adviser

'I am excited to shape and work on my post-football career while I am still actively playing football'

With plenty of time on his hands these days, Mesut Ozil has embarked on a new career by joining American venture capital fund Class 5 Global. Despite earning a wage of around £350,000 a week at Arsenal, Ozil has been frozen out over recent months - omitted from Mikel Arteta's Premier League and Europa League squads. He will now become a strategic adviser for Class 5 Global, which gains venture capital funding for online start-up groups. Based in San Francisco, the company already work with numerous well-known names throughout the sporting world - including David Beckham. Ozil, who was already an investor in the company, released a brief statement to announce his new role. 'I am excited to shape and work on my post-football career while I am still actively playing football,' he said, presumably without irony. Ozil, 32, hasn't played a single minute of football for Mikel Arteta's side since March, and the Gunners want to get rid. He had been expected to leave Arsenal over the summer transfer window only for a move to fail to materialise. He will now have to wait until January and the opening of the next window to depart, though could remain until the end of the season when his contract is due to expire.