Dejagah withdraws from Germany's U-21 match against Israel

IRNA - BERLIN, German-Iranian footballer Ashkan Dejagah has withdrawn for political reasons from Friday's football match of Germany's Under-21 national squad in Israel, local news reports said here Saturday.

"It is known that I am a German-Iranian. I don't want to say anything more," said Dejagah after Germany's Under-21 head coach Dieter Eilts surprisingly left him out of the roster.

"It was well known beforehand that I won't fly (to Israel). The coach understood my reasons," the VfL Wolfsburg midfielder added.

Dejagah is normally a starting player in the line-up of Germany's Under-21 national football team.

The Iranian-born Bundesliga player is regarded as one of Germany's great football hopes by experts.

According to former German national team assistant coach Michael Skibbe, Dejagah has "excellent prospects" to join the A-team in the near future.

Dejagah has yet to make a decision on whether he wants to play for the national football team of his native country Iran or Germany, his father Mohammad Dejagah told IRNA in a recent exclusive interview in Berlin.