When Bayern Munich is in the San Siro on Wednesday evening, this could be Thomas Muller's last performance for the club, his last game in the full stop. His approaching output has sent reverb in Germany.
At the age of 35, Muller had to accept a reduced role in Bayern this season, the majority of his performances from the bank and scored only once in the Bundesliga. But that is his reputation, the news that there would be no new contract, has still left shocked.
“I couldn't believe it when I saw it on television and read about it in the newspapers,” Roman Weidenfeller tells Sky Sports. “Bayern Munich is going in a new direction, but I think it was the wrong moment to say to him:” Thomas Muller, you don't get a new contract. “
Uli Hoodheid, the honorary doctorate of Bayern has since acknowledged that mistakes were made when he gave Muller false hope for a new deal in February. The player had to be ushered to the exit. “You can see that they do not entirely agree with the finish of his career.”
Weidenfeller is a Borussia Dortmund-Man, albeit a World Cup Winning teammate of Muller's from 2014. But his feelings are also shared by some in Bayern. The Bavarian Giants are proud of their class, the largest family club in the world.
Let a legend go if he seems to be so uncomfortable with how it is being treated, makes a lot of uncomfortable. The sympathies of Jurgen Klinsmann, the former Bayern striker, and the man who gave Muller his debut during his time as a coach of the club, are with the player.
Asked by Sky Sports about the call, says Klinsmann: “If there is such a big decision to make, this makes big, big waves because Thomas Muller is unique. He is one of the greatest German players in the past 15 years. What he has done is incredible.”
To be clear, that is 12 Bundesliga titles, two champions competitions and one world cup win. “And he did all that with Bayern Munich and he stays with his club. And there are few players who play their entire career at one club, but he is one of them.” So far.
“Of course I still have friends there. I thought they might have been able to wait until the end of the season. I just finish it. Say Thomas, we will talk as soon as the Champions League is ready and there is enough time to sit down, drink coffee and discuss it.”
“Come out with this big, big news now, just before the quarterfinals against Inter Milan, I thought the timing was a bit off, you know. Because of course it is what you do with regard to Thomas, it will be a huge [reaction] from fans, from media. “
Much of the focus in the immediate aftermath of the news was on Muller de Man, the embodiment of Bayern during this period. A Gregarious character, he is just as much a rarity of the field as it on. Everyone expects Bayern to feel different after his departure.
“He is a great striker, but he is a better person,” says Weidenfeller. “He is very human and always smiles. He talks so much on the field, but much more, so it's always great to see him, it's always funny. When I see him, I have a great time with him.
“When Thomas Muller leaves and leaves the dressing room, it is something special. He has been there for 25 years, so when he leaves, it goes behind a big hole.” Klinsmann agrees, smiling while he is starting to work together with the young Muller.
“They will miss him in the dressing room,” he says laughing. “We call him Radio Muller because he entertains everyone. He is such a positive boy and he is just full of pleasure. And so entertaining for our team. So that's for sure, the dressing room will miss him.
“He is just such a fantastic man, he is humble, he is down to earth, he is always positive. So he will take this in the right way. He will finish things at the highest possible level. And there is clearly a need for him now that now that now that now [Jamal] Musiala was injured … “
That is the irony. Muller may have been a well -hindered bit -part player for a large part of the campaign, but this is the moment when trophies are won and inheritances are forged – and he starts. Muller offered the assist for Raphael Guerreiro in Der Klasiker on Sunday.
His passes to Michael Olise in the first half and Harry Kane in the second justified at least one. Muller looked full of life in that game against Dortmund, the movement still there, the films as imaginative as always. Vincent Kompany will also need him in Milan.
“He is a special player with that special nose,” says Weidenfeller, “Always go where it is very dangerous.” You know the term raumdeuter – space interpreter – one that has practically entered the English lexicon but remains associated with only one man.
The story of how Muller was discovered and was pushed into the Bayern team is also told well. The legendary German striker Gerd Muller at the time had a role that the young people of the club coached. Klinsmann walked around a chat with the big man and the rest is history.
“I said,” Gerd, what's going on with your young people? ” And he said: “You have to see this one funny enough here.
There were a number of talents in that development team, future senior players such as Holger Badstuber and Diego Contento among them. Klinsmann took them to the team of the first team to train with the senior players. “Thomas was the most advanced.”
Why? Because even then he had that rare talent who would define his long career, a capacity that is apparently impossible to teach. “He sees things [before they happen]. He knew in advance where to go where the ball will fall. “It is Timing's genius.
“Those are characteristics that are a bit timeless,” Klinsmann explains. “He doesn't relate so much on physicality. He doesn't have to be the fastest. He doesn't have to be the one who jumps the highest. So he will keep those skills long.
“As long as he does not touch any injuries of physical problems, he can easily play at this level for another three or four years. And with that specific Thomas Muller playing style, he will be so valuable to those who would follow him.
“That is now the big question in Germany for all fans. Is he going to keep playing abroad? Is there the option of Saudi Aarabia for big money. And the other Hot Topic is MLS. If he would consider it, for me, in California, I would be excited.
“From an American perspective we would all be very happy if the United States is an option for him. Because he would fit so perfectly in MLS. He would deliver the field, such as the Lionel Messis and David Beckhams of this world, but he would also deliver the field.
“He is a seller for this game, so positive. He loves children. He does so much for the game outside the field. I think there is now a huge chance for MLS.” But that is for the future. Muller has a number of unfinished things at home and in Europe.
Bayern is well placed to ensure that the Bundesliga title is held before he leaves. What happens in the summer is still unclear. “It is possible to play in the club World Cup in America,” says Weidenfeller. But the Champions League is the big prize.
The final is in Munich at the end of May. The thought of the occasion of the showpiece that takes place without them is unbearable in Bavaria. But in the second stage against Inter, they are already a goal from the first match at home. The opportunities are against them.
“It's hard because they are not in good condition,” says Weidenfeller. “And it's not that easy with the San Siro.” The space will be a premium against Simone Inzaghi's Inter. If that man Muller, the Raumdeuter himself, can be, it can be to find it, that would indeed be a story.
Comments