ONE OF THE most common phrases heard during one of Germany’s World Cup matches was ‘Thomas Müller can’t be only 24, can he?’
The Bayern Munich forward followed up his five-goal haul at World Cup 2010 with another five in a tournament won by Germany on Sunday. His namesake, Gerd Müller, has confidently predicted the young forward will surpass the 16 goals teammate Miroslav Klose scored in his World Cup career.
German boss Jogi Löw raised many an eyebrow when he selected a World Cup squad with only Klose as a ‘recognised’ striker. This claim was somewhat disingenuous as Müller had just completed a double-winning season with Bayern when he found the net 18 times in 43 games [33 starts].
Müller kicked off his second World Cup campaign by scoring his side’s opener against Portugal, antagonising Pepe to a degree where the defender was sent off for a head-butt, and notching goals two and three in a 4-0 thrashing. His pin-point cross set up Mario Götze for the first equaliser against Ghana and he finished the match despite taking a nasty gash to the eye. The heatmap [below] sums up his roving role during the competition:
The German’s most complete game of the tournament came against Algeria in the last 16. Listing as his team’s main striker, Müller interchanged with first Götze then André Schürrle and spent long periods on the right and left wings as he tried to stretch the Algerian defence. His run and cross set up the Schürrle goal that set Germany on their way.
During that game, Müller clocked a little over 12 kilometres. The tournament average was slightly over 9km but Müller’s total for seven games [including two extra times, which inevitably bump up his numbers] was 83.6km.
He dropped back to assist with his team’s defensive efforts in the quarter-final win, a game that was by far his quietest in terms of attacking threat [one shot on goal, two crosses into the box]. A team effort was required to see off France and, as he reflected post match, the Germans were not playing ‘a Mickey Mouse team’.
He next exposed a Thiago Silva-less Brazilian defence and the inept man-marking efforts of David Luiz to burst the goal-scoring floodgates [clip below] in Belo Horizonte. He also chipped in with another assist and his dummy was sublime in the lead-up to Kloose’s goal to make it 2-0.
In the final, Müller’s performance reflected that of his team. He was kept relatively quiet in the opening 20 minutes but grew into the match as it progressed. He kept a wide brief, out right, during the first half and found Schürrle and Mesut Özil with crosses after good runs.
Ultimately, Müller’s stats of scoring five and setting up another three goals are strong enough arguments on their own for his deserving the best player accolade. Add to that his indefatigable work effort, ability to cover numerous positions, ball-holding skills and pass accuracy [79.5%] and you have a complete performance from a complete player.
Why Thomas Müller was the best player at the 2014 World Cup
ONE OF THE most common phrases heard during one of Germany’s World Cup matches was ‘Thomas Müller can’t be only 24, can he?’
The Bayern Munich forward followed up his five-goal haul at World Cup 2010 with another five in a tournament won by Germany on Sunday. His namesake, Gerd Müller, has confidently predicted the young forward will surpass the 16 goals teammate Miroslav Klose scored in his World Cup career.
German boss Jogi Löw raised many an eyebrow when he selected a World Cup squad with only Klose as a ‘recognised’ striker. This claim was somewhat disingenuous as Müller had just completed a double-winning season with Bayern when he found the net 18 times in 43 games [33 starts].
Müller kicked off his second World Cup campaign by scoring his side’s opener against Portugal, antagonising Pepe to a degree where the defender was sent off for a head-butt, and notching goals two and three in a 4-0 thrashing. His pin-point cross set up Mario Götze for the first equaliser against Ghana and he finished the match despite taking a nasty gash to the eye. The heatmap [below] sums up his roving role during the competition:
Qualification as group winners was by no means secure when Müller showed up as the edge of the box to score an excellent goal that downed the USA 1-0.
The German’s most complete game of the tournament came against Algeria in the last 16. Listing as his team’s main striker, Müller interchanged with first Götze then André Schürrle and spent long periods on the right and left wings as he tried to stretch the Algerian defence. His run and cross set up the Schürrle goal that set Germany on their way.
During that game, Müller clocked a little over 12 kilometres. The tournament average was slightly over 9km but Müller’s total for seven games [including two extra times, which inevitably bump up his numbers] was 83.6km.
He dropped back to assist with his team’s defensive efforts in the quarter-final win, a game that was by far his quietest in terms of attacking threat [one shot on goal, two crosses into the box]. A team effort was required to see off France and, as he reflected post match, the Germans were not playing ‘a Mickey Mouse team’.
He next exposed a Thiago Silva-less Brazilian defence and the inept man-marking efforts of David Luiz to burst the goal-scoring floodgates [clip below] in Belo Horizonte. He also chipped in with another assist and his dummy was sublime in the lead-up to Kloose’s goal to make it 2-0.
In the final, Müller’s performance reflected that of his team. He was kept relatively quiet in the opening 20 minutes but grew into the match as it progressed. He kept a wide brief, out right, during the first half and found Schürrle and Mesut Özil with crosses after good runs.
Ultimately, Müller’s stats of scoring five and setting up another three goals are strong enough arguments on their own for his deserving the best player accolade. Add to that his indefatigable work effort, ability to cover numerous positions, ball-holding skills and pass accuracy [79.5%] and you have a complete performance from a complete player.
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