Finally it is the end of the speculation about the national team that will be added by Bayern Munich wonderkid, Jamal Musiala. The 17-year-old has played for England and Germany youth teams at various age groups. Speaking to The Athletic, Musiala prefers the German national team, the country where he was born. This decision is not easy given Musiala’s strong connection to the two football nations.
Musiala was born in Stuttgart with mixed blood of Germany, England and Nigeria. His mother is German, while his father is of British and Nigerian blood. He had spent his childhood in Fulda, a small town in the northeast of Frankfurt. When Musiala was seven years old, he moved to the south of England because his mother decided to study sociology at Southampton University.
Moving to England at a young age was not easy for Musiala, especially since he only spoke a little English at that time. Even so, the Musiala environment in England embraces him so much that it makes him comfortable. “Even though I am different, a child with a mixed background who doesn’t speak English, I don’t think people treat me differently,” Musiala said.
Musiala then found a way to communicate. Yes, football. According to him, football is a universal language that everyone who plays, no matter what language background can understand. He played for a local club called Central City until at one time, Chelsea offered Musiala to join their academy.
Chelsea is a place where this attacking midfielder has studied since he was eight years old. Musiala developed very rapidly in the west London team. He got a shoe sponsor from Nike when he was 12 years old. Apart from that, Musiala almost always belongs to the higher age group.
Musiala joined Chelsea Under-18 when he was 14 years old. He also strengthened the England U-15 national team even though he was only 13 years old. Musiala also played for the German U-16 national team when he was 15 years old. Great achievements for young players, moreover, playing in a higher age group is no easy matter. Never mind the count of years, just six months apart, there is a quite high difference in physical abilities at a young age. Therefore, the mentality of young players who face this challenge is very tested.
When he was 16 years old, Musiala was one of the young players who was highly targeted by Europe’s top clubs, including Bayern. Finally, Bayern managed to convince Musiala that they can provide a greater opportunity to enter the main squad than Chelsea. At that time, Frank Lampard, who was fond of playing young players, was not yet a Chelsea coach.
Musiala finally chose Bayern and played for Bayern U-17 coached by Miroslav Klose. Within eight months, Musiala moved up to the U-19 team, the reserve team, then the Bayern first team. An unprecedented achievement at Bayern.
Approaching the age of 18, Musiala must start considering which national team he will defend. England is a country where he grew up and practiced football at a crucial age. “England is home to me. It’s hard to find the right word for England because I have a lot of good memories, ”said Musiala.
Musiala considered many things so he finally chose Germany. “What’s best for my future? Where do I have better chances to play? Finally, I heard my inner voice that playing for Germany was the right decision, the land where I was born. However, it is still not an easy decision, ”said Musiala.
The decision also cannot be separated from the intervention of several German players such as Joshua Kimmich and Serge Gnabry who “instigated” Musiala. In addition, Musiala also met Joachim Low at the end of January. The next day, Low made it public that he would summon Musiala at the international break in March.
Playing as the number 10 attacking midfielder, Musiala is a creative player with good technique but has a good work rate when defending. This has been a hallmark of Musiala from a young age. “I remember when we played Spurs, he scored six or seven goals. But he also has a high desire to win the ball energetically, “said Brian Mustill, Musiala coach at Chelsea U-8 and U-10.
Good technique allows Musiala to play in tight spaces. One of the things that became the topic of discussion was when Bayern faced FC Duren at the DFB Pokal event last October. Musiala danced in the opponent’s penalty box before firing a shot even though he failed to produce a goal.
“Everyone can see he has high quality with the ball. He is the best among our young players, “said Bayern coach, Hansi Flick. Musiala slowly started to get minutes to play. In the Bundesliga this season, he played 16 times for a total of 407 minutes. Musiala is able to score three goals in the domestic league.
Most recently, he scored in the last 16 of the Champions League against Lazio. These goals made Musiala become England and Germany’s youngest goalscorer. It cannot be denied that he is a young player with great potential. His contribution will be a positive thing for Der Panzer who managed to convince Musiala.
ASL
