Thomas Müller celebrated his jubilee as befits a player of his class and standing: in his 400th Bundesliga match, he contributed a goal and an assist to the 4-0 win over VfL Wolfsburg. His coach subsequently outed himself as a fan.
The game was decided, the short winter break as good as reached: But Thomas Müller still exuded a hunger in the final phase against Wolfsburg like the festive party for roast goose on Christmas Day. He tirelessly spurred on his colleagues – verbally and in action himself. And of course Müller also cheered Robert Lewandowski’s 4:0 as someone who was not involved in this scene.
Before that, the 32-year-old had set the course for victory with a tap-in for the 1-0 lead and fine preparation for Dayot Upamecano’s 2-0. His share? Big! “His performance was very good, he also started well again in the second half, kept cheering in the run-up actions and coached Lewy very well, for example,” praised coach Julian Nagelsmann and came to the non-exclusive conclusion: “Thomas has a great gift for spotting spaces and things. “
Augenthaler and Schwarzenbeck within reach
Thanks in part to that gift, the international has had a strong first half, with five goals and 15 assists adding up to a strong 20 scorer points. This is the eleventh time in his career that he has reached this mark, and he has done so at the halfway point of the season. “Thomas has won everything in his life that you can win. He has had and still has a great influence on FC Bayern and the national team, yet he is extremely approachable, incredibly intelligent and quick-witted,” enthused Nagelsmann, also of Müller’s talents off the pitch: “He has a saying for every situation, but always with substance. Thomas is very amusing but very focused, working with him is a lot of fun.”
The eternal Müller is far from being the proverbial old iron, even the mark of 500 Bundesliga games seems realistic. Only five players have been on the pitch for the record champions more often than Müller, and he will be the next to overtake Klaus Augenthaler (404). “Katsche” Schwarzenbeck (416) is also still within reach this season, and Gerd Müller (427) and Oliver Kahn (429) in the coming one. Sepp Maier sits at the top with 473 games. Still. In the 2023/24 season, Müller could pass him by.
