Ten years ago, Mesut Özil scored one of the most famous goals of his career.
The Arsenal playmaker was sent in behind the Ludogorets back line in a 2016 Champions League game. Özil deftly flicked the ball over the onrushing goalkeeper's head, then showed incredible composure to dance past two desperately lunging defenders before calmly finishing into an open net.
Özil, who retired in 2023, was known more for his assists during his career, but the late winning goal against the Bulgarian side will always be remembered.
Now, thanks to AI, Özil's goal has been resurrected in a strange new way.
The former Germany international's goal has been at the center of a recent viral trend in which the most cinematic replay of his strike has been used as a template
for any number of characters – animated, video game, TV or movies – scoring the exact same goal.
Everyone from Walter White to SpongeBob SquarePants to a T-Rex has been inserted into AI videos of the goal.
Below we've selected some of the best examples of this strange and sometimes hilarious trend.
Michael Scott from 'The Office'
😂 We have a winner. pic.twitter.com/sGTSMRgyTQ
— 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝙆𝙄𝙏𝙎𝙈𝘼𝙉 (@The_Kitsman) October 18, 2026
Uncle Phil from 'The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'
There are times when you think AI has gone too far, but then there are moments when you see Uncle Phil from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air scoring Mesut Özil's goal against Ludogrets, and suddenly it all feels worthwhile. pic.twitter.com/nhIgoO0LbO
— bootifulgame (@bootifulgame) October 8, 2026
Woody from 'Toy Story'
Özil's amazing goal, Toy Story style! 🤠⚽️#futbol #ozil #toystory #arsenal #goles pic.twitter.com/kGL9tJJF1b
— David Sinho (@davidsinho34) October 16, 2026
A chicken
🚨Humans were given advanced super intelligence and decided to recreate Özil’s goal using chickens pic.twitter.com/repf9oQl4P
— Polymarket Sports (@PolymarketSport) October 16, 2026
Mario
Mario spent 40 years rescuing Princess Peach when he could've been winning Ballon d'Ors. pic.twitter.com/zdtvZ1F7KN
— Footy Humour (@FootyHumour) October 18, 2026
A T-Rex
Guys, I KNOW it was Ozil I just liked this more better than OZIL one!❤️ pic.twitter.com/8Wzu7vmwF3
— 💀 Ⓚⓡⓐⓣⓞⓢ †⃝ 🥷🏾 (@Benjaminjayhay) October 16, 2026
SpongeBob SquarePants
— Out Of Context Football (@nocontextfooty) October 15, 2026
Shrek
— Out Of Context Football (@nocontextfooty) October 15, 2026
Albus Dumbledore from 'Harry Potter'
Tenes que cerrar Hogwarts. 🪄 pic.twitter.com/gMMvak9QvQ
— Иacho ® 🇦🇷🔴⚫️ (@NachoCavallo74) October 18, 2026
But the winner for the strangest upside-down version of the goal came from Özil himself, who inserted an AI version of his current, more muscular self scoring a goal that he had actually scored.
What a world.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why are Shrek and a T-Rex scoring Mesut Ozil's goal? The viral AI trend explained
