Bayern Munich and Germany star Jamal Musiala was the subject of a tug-of-war between the England and Germany men’s national teams over three years ago. Now, former Germany coach Joachim Löw has revealed what went down — and how he helped recruit the young sensation into the fold.
“[Former DFB director] Oliver Bierhoff and I went to Munich in spring 2021 and talked to him, and of course also with his mother,” Löw revealed in recent TV appearance (as captured by kicker). “He grew up in England, had friends there and did all his training there. He had already thought about whether he wanted to play for England or Germany.
“For the only time in my time as national coach, I made a promise to a player: Although he wasn’t actually a regular player at Bayern, I told him that he would definitely be there for the 2021 European Championship in the summer if he decided to play for us.”
Musiala has become so integral to both his club and national team’s success in the years since that it is almost hard to imagine now. But at the time, he was a young substitute — having only just turned 18, and logging just seven starts out of 26 league appearances in the 2020/21 season. The big news that year was the return of veteran Thomas Müller — also Musiala’s mentor at Bayern, and the big star at his position.
But Löw evidently knew how important it was for Germany to secure the youngster’s international commitment, and devoted a roster spot just for him at EURO 2020. He barely played — though when he did, made a memorable impact in a crucial final group stage match against Hungary to help secure Germany’s qualification.
And from there, he has simply never looked back.
