For other people named Thomas Müller, see Thomas Müller (disambiguation).
Thomas Müller
Müller with Bayern Munich in 2022
Personal information
Full name Thomas Müller[1]
Date of birth 13 September 1989 (age 35)[2]
Place of birth Weilheim in Oberbayern, West Germany
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[3]
• Forward
Position(s)
• attacking midfielder
Team information
Current team Bayern Munich
Number 25
Youth career
1993–2000 TSV Pähl
2000–2008 Bayern Munich
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2007–2009 Bayern Munich II 35 (16)
2008– Bayern Munich 483 (150)
International career
2004–2005 Germany U16 6 (0)
2007 Germany U19 3 (0)
2008 Germany U20 1 (1)
2009 Germany U21 6 (1)
2010–2024 Germany 131 (45)
show
Medal record
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 16:25, 9 November 2024 (UTC)
Thomas Müller (German pronunciation: [ˈtoːmas ˈmʏlɐ];[4] born 13 September 1989)
is a German professional footballer who plays for Bundesliga club Bayern Munich.
He plays as an attacking midfielder or a second striker.[5][6][7] Widely regarded as
one of the greatest players in the history of the game,[8][9][10] Müller has been
praised for his positioning, finishing, playmaking, work-rate, and consistency in
both scoring and creating goals.[11]
A product of Bayern Munich’s youth system, Müller has represented the club ever
since. With Bayern, he has won a record twelve Bundesliga titles, six DFB-Pokals,
eight DFL-Supercups, two UEFA Champions League titles, two UEFA Super Cups,
and two FIFA Club World Cups. He made his first team breakthrough in the 2009–
10 season after Louis van Gaal was appointed as the main coach; he played
almost every game that season as Bayern won the league and cup double and
reached the 2010 UEFA Champions League final. Müller scored in the 2012 UEFA
Champions League final, and while Bayern lost the final, Müller scored 23 goals in
the 2012–13 season as Bayern won a historic treble; the league title, cup
and Champions League. He broke the Bundesliga record for assists by providing
21 in a season (a joint record in the top five leagues held with Lionel Messi in La
Liga) and scored 14 goals in 2019–20 season as Bayern won a second treble. With
over 710 matches played across seventeen seasons, Müller is Bayern's all-time
record appearance holder. He also holds the record for the most UEFA Champions
League appearances with one team.
Müller was called up to the Germany national team in 2010. At the 2010 FIFA
World Cup, he scored five goals in six appearances as Germany finished in third
place. He was named the Best Young Player of the tournament and won
the Golden Boot as the tournament's top scorer, with five goals and three assists.
At the 2014 FIFA World Cup, he played a major role in helping the team win the
trophy, as he scored five goals and received the Silver Ball as the tournament's
second best player and the Silver Boot as the second top goalscorer. He was also
named in the World Cup All-Star XI and in the Dream Team. He retired from
international football after the UEFA Euro 2024. In 2020, Müller became the most
decorated German footballer in history with 27 trophies. [12]
Club career
[edit]
Early career
[edit]
Müller played as a youth for TSV Pähl, and at the age of 10 [13] he made the 50-
kilometre (31 mi) journey to join local Bundesliga side Bayern Munich in 2000.
[3] He progressed through the youth system and was part of the team that
finished runner-up in the Under 19 Bundesliga in 2007.[14] Growing up, his favorite
player was Giovane Élber.[15]
Bayern Munich
[edit]
Müller made his debut for the reserve team in March 2008 when he
replaced Stephan Fürstner in a Regionalliga match against SpVgg Unterhaching,
[16] in which he scored. He made two more Regionalliga appearances in the 2007–
08 season,[17] while continuing to play for the under-19 team. The following
season, Bayern's second string qualified for the newly formed 3. Liga, and Müller
established himself as a key player – he played in 32 out of 38 matches [18] and
scored 15 times[19] to make him the league's fifth top scorer.[20]
2008–09 season
[edit]
Müller became involved in the first-team under then manager Jürgen Klinsmann;
he appeared in pre-season friendlies,[21][22] and made his full debut on 15 August
2008, when he came on as a substitute for Miroslav Klose for the last ten minutes
of a Bundesliga match against Hamburger SV.[23] Despite Müller feeling that his
performance did not go well,[24] he made three more Bundesliga appearances that
season[18] and made his Champions League debut on 10 March 2009 when he was
substituted on in the 72nd minute for Bastian Schweinsteiger in a 7–1 win
over Sporting CP. He scored Bayern's last goal as they won the tie 12–1
on aggregate.[25]
In February 2009, Müller signed his first contract for the senior team, a two-year
deal effective from the 2009–10 season, along with reserve teammate Holger
Badstuber.[26]
2009–10 season
[edit]
See also: 2009–10 FC Bayern Munich season
Müller was prepared to be loaned or even transferred away to find first-team
football,[24] but when Louis van Gaal was appointed manager, both Müller and
Badstuber became fixtures in the Bayern first team from the start of the season.
[27] In the first few matches, Müller was a regular substitute, and on 12 September
2009, he was brought on against Borussia Dortmund and scored two goals in a 5–
1 victory.[28] Three days later, he scored another brace in a 3–0 Champions
League victory over Maccabi Haifa.[29] He rounded off September by being named
the Bundesliga Player of the Month[30] and earned praise from his namesake,
legendary former Bayern and Germany striker Gerd Müller.[31] After the Haifa
match, Müller was in the starting XI for almost every match, [32] only missing one
match, a Champions League match against Bordeaux, for which he was
suspended,[33] because he was sent off in an earlier match against the same
team.[34]
In February 2010, Müller signed a new contract with Bayern Munich through 2013.
[35] During the second half of the season, Müller continued to be a regular first-
team starter,[27] usually playing in a central striking role due to the availability of
other wide players Franck Ribéry and Arjen Robben. In April 2010, he scored the
second goal in a 2–1 win against title rivals Schalke 04,[36] and in the penultimate
league match of the season, he scored the first hat-trick of his career,[37] in a 3–1
win over VfL Bochum which effectively secured the German title for Bayern.
[38] The title was confirmed a week later with a 3–1 win at Hertha BSC,[39][40] a
match which Müller started.[41]
For the season, Müller played in all 34 Bundesliga matches, [42] starting 29, and
recorded 13 goals and 11 assists.[27] Bayern and Müller were back in Berlin the
following week, to face Werder Bremen in the final of the DFB-Pokal. He started
the match and Bayern won 4–0 to complete the domestic double.[43] Müller scored
four goals and made two assists during the competition, which made him its
leading scorer for the season.[44] Bayern's season ended in pursuit of a first treble,
in the 2010 Champions League Final against Inter Milan at Santiago Bernabéu
Stadium in Madrid. It was not to be, however, as they lost 2–0, with both goals
coming from Diego Milito. Müller was in the starting line-up and had a key chance
just after half-time, with Bayern 1–0 down, but his shot was saved by Júlio César.
[45] Müller felt particularly disappointed by this defeat, [24] but he ended his first
season as a first-team player with 52 matches played and 19 goals in all
competitions.[27]
In a poll conducted by the sports magazine kicker, he was voted by his fellow
professionals as the best newcomer of the 2009–10 season [46] and was named in
the Bundesliga Team of the Season.[47] Müller credits Van Gaal for having had the
biggest part to play in his rise to success – the coach arrived with a reputation for
promoting youth team players, particularly at Ajax, and consistently gave Müller
his chance in the first-team, going as far to say "Müller spielt bei mir immer"
("with me, Müller will always play").[48] Müller, in return, described Van Gaal as "a
genius technician" who makes players "improve every time". [24]
2010–11 season
[edit]
See also: 2010–11 FC Bayern Munich season
Müller with Bayern Munich in Saint Petersburg, Russia, May 2011
Müller returned from his post-World Cup break to sign another contract extension,
this time extending his stay at Bayern until 2015. [49] As with all of Bayern's World
Cup participants, he missed much of pre-season,[50] and his first match back was
the Supercup against Schalke 04 on 7 August.[51] He was named in the starting
11, and scored the opening goal in a 2–0 win. [52] Two weeks later he scored the
opening goal of Bayern's league season in a 2–1 home win against VfL Wolfsburg.
[53]
Müller played in every match of the first half of the season, usually as a starter,
[54] but as the team struggled for results, Müller was unable to match the previous
season's goalscoring exploits,[54] being dropped to the bench,[48] and even
receiving a telling off from Louis van Gaal after missing an easy chance in a 2–0
defeat against 1. FC Kaiserslautern in August.[24][55] He was philosophical about
this dip in form, though,[56] and after eight league games without a goal, he
scored in a 4–1 win against Eintracht Frankfurt on 27 November;[57] He followed
that by scoring in consecutive league and cup wins against VfB Stuttgart three
weeks later.[58][59] These goals took his tally to eight goals in all
competitions[54] and included a spectacular goal to open the scoring in a 2–0
Champions League victory against Roma on 15 September.[24][60]
As his team was on its winter break, Müller was left to reflect on what he
described as "an almost unbelievable first year as a pro". [56] Müller began the
second half of the season in good form, but was involved in an altercation with
teammate Arjen Robben, who was angered when Müller showed his displeasure at
a poor free-kick Robben took during a 3–1 win at Werder Bremen. [61] Müller again
played in every game of the season[62] and scored 19 goals (12 in the league),
[63] but the season was less successful for Bayern, as they finished third in the
league,[64] and were knocked out of the DFB-Pokal in the semi-finals by Schalke
04[65] and in the round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League by Inter Milan;
Bayern had won 1–0 at the San Siro, and Müller scored 31 minutes into the second
leg to make it 3–1 on aggregate, but Inter levelled the score at 3–3 in the 88th
minute to go through on the away goals rule.[66] Müller's mentor Van Gaal was
increasingly criticised for inflexibility in tactical, transfer and selection policy,
[67] and ultimately lost his job, being replaced with Jupp Heynckes.[68]
2011–12 season
[edit]
See also: 2011–12 FC Bayern Munich season
In Bayern's first DFB-Pokal game Müller was awarded the man of the match after
earning two penalties which were converted by Mario Gómez and Bastian
Schweinsteiger, Müller then added a third in the closing stages to secure a 3–0
victory over Eintracht Braunschweig.[69] It took Müller five matches for him to get
his first league goal; he scored it against Schalke 04 in Bayern's 2–0 win. Müller
then scored in Bayern's next home game in the early stages of the match, which
they went on to win, 3–0. On 26 November 2011, Müller netted the opener on the
half-hour in Bayern's 6–0 thrashing of FC Ingolstadt, giving him his second DFB-
Pokal goal.[70] Müller was on the short-list of this year's FIFA Ballon d'Or award.
[71] On 10 and 15 January, in Bayern's warm up friendlies, Müller scored three
goals in two games, a brace against the India national team (which Bayern then
went on to win 4–0)[72] and one goal in Bayern's other 4–0 victory over Rot-Weiß
Erfurt.[73] Müller provided two assists in Bayern's win over VfB Stuttgart in the
DFB-Pokal.
On 11 February, Bayern played 1. FC Kaiserslautern and Müller ended a goal
drought lasting since 24 September 2011 with a header in their 2–0 victory. [74] On
31 March 2012, Müller played his 100th Bundesliga game against 1. FC Nürnberg.
[75][76] On 19 May 2012, Müller scored the opening goal in the 83rd minute of
the Champions League final against Chelsea with a powerful header, before being
substituted for defender Daniel Van Buyten moments later. Bayern, however, then
conceded a late equaliser, and would go on to lose the final on penalties. Müller
stated post match how dissatisfied he was about the amount of time he had spent
on the bench recently,[77] although also expressed his desire to stay at Bayern in
spite of this.[77] During the season, Müller had scored seven goals in 34 league
matches, two goals in five German Cup m
