When Bayern Munich face Inter in the San Siro on Wednesday night, it could be Thomas Muller’s final Champions League appearance for the club, his final game in the competition full stop. His impending exit has sent reverberations around Germany.
At 35, Muller has had to accept a diminished role at Bayern this season, making most of his appearances from the bench and scoring just once in the Bundesliga. But such is his reputation, the news that there would be no new contract has still left some shocked.
“I could not believe it when I saw it on television and read about it in the newspapers,” Roman Weidenfeller tells Sky Sports. “Bayern Munich are going in a new direction but I think it was the wrong time to say to him, ‘Thomas Muller, you are not getting a new contract.'”
Watch highlights from Der Klassiker as Borussia Dortmund travelled to Bayern Munich
Uli Hoeness, Bayern’s honorary president has since acknowledged mistakes were made when he gave Muller false hope of a new deal in February. The player has had to be ushered towards the exit. “You can see they do not totally agree with the finish of his career.”
Weidenfeller is a Borussia Dortmund man, albeit a World Cup winning team-mate of Muller’s from 2014. But his sentiments are shared by some within Bayern too. The Bavarian giants pride themselves on their class, the biggest family club on the planet.
Letting a legend go when he appears so uncomfortable with how it is being handled makes many uneasy. The sympathies of Jurgen Klinsmann, the former Bayern striker, and the man who gave Muller his debut during his time as coach of the club, are with the player.
Asked by Sky Sports about the call, Klinsmann says: “When there is such a big decision to be made, this makes big, big waves because Thomas Muller is unique. He is one of the biggest German players over the last 15 years. What he has done is unbelievable.”
For clarity, that is 12 Bundesliga titles, two Champions Leagues and one World Cup win. “And he did that all with Bayern Munich and he is sticking to his club. And there are very few players that play their entire career at one club but he is one of them.” Until now.
United States coach Jurgen Klinsmann greets his former player Thomas Muller of Germany
“Obviously, I have friends still there. I thought maybe they could have waited until the end of the season. Just finish it off. Say, ‘Hey Thomas, we will talk once the Champions League is done and there is enough time to sit down, have a coffee and discuss it.’
“Coming out with this big, big news just right now, right before the quarter-final against Inter Milan, I thought the timing was a bit off, you know. Because obviously, whatever you do in regards to Thomas, it will create a huge [reaction] from fans, from media.”
Much of the focus in the immediate aftermath of the news has been on Muller the man, the epitome of Bayern throughout this period. A gregarious character, he is as much of a rarity off the field as on it. Everyone expects Bayern to feel different after his departure.
Thomas Muller and Roman Weidenfeller were international teammates with Germany
“He is a great striker, but he is a better person,” says Weidenfeller. “He is very human and always smiling. He talks so much on the pitch but much more off it so it is always great to see him, it is always funny. Whenever I see him, I have a great time with him.
“When Thomas Muller leaves the dressing room and goes away, it is something special. He has been there 25 years so when he goes away, it is going to leave a big hole.” Klinsmann agrees, smiling as he begins to recollect working with the young Muller.
“They will miss him in the dressing room,” he says, laughing. “We call him Radio Muller because he entertains everybody. He is such a positive lad and he is just full of fun. And so very entertaining for our team. So that is for sure, the locker room will miss him.
“He is just such a fantastic guy, he is humble, he is down to earth, he is always positive. So, he will take this the right way. He will finish off things at the highest level possible for him. And obviously there is a need for him now that [Jamal] Musiala got injured…”
Thomas Muller is believed to be frustrated with the handling of his Bayern Munich exit
That is the irony. Muller may have been a well remunerated bit-part player for much of the campaign but this is the time when trophies are won and legacies forged – and he is starting. Muller provided the assist for Raphael Guerreiro in Der Klassiker on Sunday.
His passes to Michael Olise in the first half and Harry Kane in the second warranted at least one more. Muller looked full of life in that game against Dortmund, the movement still there, the flicks as imaginative as ever. Vincent Kompany will need him in Milan too.
“He is a special player with that special nose,” says Weidenfeller, “always going where it is very dangerous.” You will know of 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 thrust into the Bayern team is well told too. The legendary German striker Gerd Muller had a role coaching the club’s youngsters back then. Klinsmann strolled over for a chat with the great man and the rest is history.
“I said, ‘Gerd, what is going on with your youngsters?’ And he said, ‘You have got to watch this one kid here. Funnily enough, his last name is Muller as well.’ And so, I walked over there and watched him.” Klinsmann immediately saw something special.
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 into the first-team squad to train with the senior players. “Thomas was the most advanced one.”
Why? Because even then he had that rare knack that would define his long career, an ability that is seemingly impossible to teach. “He sees things [before they happen]. He knew ahead of time where to go, where the ball will drop.” It is the genius of timing.
Bayern Munich’s Thomas Muller still putting himself where it hurts in search of goals
“Those are characteristics that are a little bit timeless,” explains Klinsmann. “He is not relying so much on physicality. He does not have to be the fastest one. He does not have to be the one who is jumping highest. So, he will keep that skillset for a long time.
“As long as he does not get any injuries of physical problems, in my opinion, he can easily play on this level for another three or four years. And with that specific Thomas Muller style of play, he is going to be so valuable for whoever would go after him.
“That is the big question now in Germany for all the fans. Is he going to continue to play? Is he going abroad? There is the option of Saudi Arabia for big, big money. And the other hot topic is MLS. If he would consider it, for me, living in California, I would be thrilled.
“From an American perspective, we would all be thrilled if the United States is an option for him. Because he would fit so perfectly in MLS. He would deliver on the field, like the Lionel Messis and David Beckhams of this world, but he would also deliver off the field.
“He is a sales rep for this game, so positive. He loves kids. He does so much for the game off the field. I think there is a huge opportunity now there for MLS.” But that is for the future. Before that, Muller has some unfinished business at home and in Europe.
Bayern are well placed to ensure that the Bundesliga title is retained before he leaves. What happens in the summer is unclear as yet. “It is possible to play in the Club World Cup in America,” points out Weidenfeller. But the Champions League is the big prize.
The final is in Munich at the end of May. The thought of the showpiece occasion taking place without them is unbearable in Bavaria. But they go into the second leg against Inter already a goal down from the first game at home. The odds are against them.
“It is tough because they are not in good shape,” says Weidenfeller. “And it is not so easy at the San Siro.” Against Simone Inzaghi’s Inter, space will be at a premium. If that man Muller, the raumdeuter himself, can be the one to find it, that would be some story indeed.
