Miroslav Klose’s time at Bayern Munich was far too brief and uneventful to be fitting for such an iconic striker, ending with the player leaving the club on a free transfer in 2011. But what did happen during his stint at Bayern was meeting Thomas Müller, who is now the only player at Bayern who remains from the Klose days. In fact, the legendary record holder of the title of most World Cup goals was the man subbed off for Müller’s 1st ever appearance for Bayern. Having watched the same player now hit an astounding 710 appearances for the club in a Bundesliga clash against SC Freiburg, what does Klose have to say about the new record appearance holder for Bayern?
Speaking to Bayern’s official website, Klose had this to say:
Miro, what were your thoughts when the young Thomas Müller joined the pros for the 2008 pre-season?
“Thomas didn’t exactly look like a footballer (laughing). He was inconspicuous at the beginning, his style of play wasn’t as multifaceted as it is today. But we quickly got along very well because our perspective on football is similar. Over all the years, one look was often enough because we both saw something with the defender.”
What does Thomas Müller have that others don’t have?
“Thomas has the full package. A superb nose, he can set up goals or score himself. He knows how to exploit space. He has a knack for timing to attack space, and he puts in legwork for his teammates. But the biggest compliment I can make him: Thomas just understands football.”
He set up your milestone goal in the World Cup semi-final against Brazil in 2014.
“His assist wasn’t that good, I needed two attempts to score (laughing). Seriously, I really liked playing with Thomas.”
Do you have a special “Thomas Müller moment”?
“Ahead of the quarter-final in the 2010 World Cup, the Argentinians got off the bus dancing to music. They were noisy in the tunnel too, so Thomas turned around and said, I think I know we’re in for something today. We all burst out laughing. He eased everything up with it, and the result is known [Germany won 4-0]. That’s just how Thomas is. He always seems completely relaxed ahead of matches, he calls his wife in the dressing room. But he’s fully focused from kick-off.”
That moment from the last answer happened in 2010, but anyone who knows Müller even the tiniest bit knows it would be typical for him to do so now, 14 years later. As much as he has grown and improved and overcome the challenges that life presented him, he seems to have remained the same person at heart. There truly is something beautiful about that.
Looking for more thoughts and analysis on the current state of Bayern Munich under Vincent Kompany? What about four key storylines to follow after international break? Or…what about why Jamal Musiala snubbing by the Ballon d’Or committee might create some longer-term issues for the Bavarians? Great, then we have you covered with this latest edition of the Bavarian Podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Show! You can get the podcast on Patreon, Spotify, or below:
