Arsenal star Skhodran Mustafi talks UK immigration, religion and his Albanian roots
Germany international defender's grandfather left his homeland behind to start a new life in Germany
SKHODRAN MUTAFI has called for patience and understanding when it comes to immigration.
The £35million Arsenal defender's grandfather left Albania to start a new life for his family in Germany.
And Mustafi, 24, has spoken out about an issue that is close to his heart.
He said: "You have to understand when people who come into the UK and Germany that you don't know what this person saw in his life before.
"When I go back to Albania you have six-year-olds who do not go to school and have to work. There are no schools. So they come to this country and it is difficult. We all need to understand the differences.
“You are not at home, you don’t see your family and your friends, and suddenly it’s not football the way I knew it at home.
“I think about my grand-father’s situation. I started at a pro club and grew in my career and he also started from zero because he left everything behind to go to Germany to build a life for him and for us as well.
“At least I knew the language and I was born in that country. I had it easier than him so I thought if he did it, I can make it as well.”
Mustafi - a devout Muslim who prays five times a day - once kept journalists waiting at a Valencia press conference until a a bottle of beer was removed from the desk.
He is promoting Arsenal's charity matchday against Stoke, with manager Arsene Wenger and each player donating a day's pay to .
Mustafi said: "It's important because you can give so much with football.
"I talk to my father and ask why was he so obsessed with football? It was about not having time to go with bad friends and doing things I shouldn't.
"He was obsessed with bringing me to every training session. If you give people the opportunity to play, that's good because football is about respect and this foundation helps with that opportunity."
Mustafi has won 15 caps for Germany despite never playing a league match in the country of his birth.
He has lived in four countries in seven years and added: "I feel settled. It is funny, as footballers we are all just moving around.
"I see people in England and then Italy and the same people in Spain. We're all moving all the time."