Mesut Ozil has sparked fresh controversy after being pictured wearing a Turkish flag chain as he arrived at the Emirates Stadium ahead of Arsenal’s Europa League semi-final with Valencia.

His choice of neck wear, according to the Daily Mail, comes in the aftermath of his high-profile fallout and retirement from the German national team, during which he suggested he was being targeted due to his Turkish ethnicity.

Ozil is a third-generation Turkish-German and earned 92 caps for Die Mannschaft, leading them to World Cup success in 2014 – but he believed he was made a scapegoat for their disastrous defence of the trophy in Russia last year.

He was pictured with controversial Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the eve of the tournament last summer and was widely criticised in his homeland.

Ozil was booed in each of Germany’s World Cup games as they crashed out in the group stage.

He retired from international duty in the aftermath and accused German FA president Reinhard Grindel of ‘racism and disrespect’.

Ozil made his presence felt on the pitch in North London on Thursday night to give Arsenal a foothold in their European tie.

The 30-year-old started on Thursday night as Unai Emery’s side took a 3-1 lead into the return leg in Spain in a week’s time.

In March, he sparked more anger in Germany as he and fiancée Amine Gulse personally invited Erdogan to their wedding as guest of honour, reports The Sun.

And displayed that loyalty once again with the chain before the match against Valencia.