?Bundesliga club Werder Bremen confirmed on Tuesday that Germany midfielder Mesut Ozil has joined Real Madrid.

Bremen refused to release the transfer fee involved for Ozil but it is believed to be around 15 million euros (19.2 million dollars).

The German club were particularly keen to offload Ozil during the summer transfer window as the 21-year-old offensive midfielder would be out of contract at the end of the season and could then have left without a transfer fee.

"We respect Mesut's wish to take the next step in his career," club manager Klaus Allofs said in a statement.

"My main concern is that we can prepare in peace and quiet for our match against Sampdoria."

Ozil, who joined Bremen from Schalke 04 in January 2008 for four million euros, follows Germany teammate Sami Khedira to the Spanish giants.

The player was absent for Bremen's final training session before Wednesday's Champions League play-off encounter Wednesday with Sampdoria.

Ozil has won 17 caps for Germany and was voted one of the 10 best players at this summer's World Cup in South Africa.