There are few players rearing to make a statement as much as Jamal Musiala this season.
The Bayern Munich star can be a top 5 in the world player on any given day. The potential is unlimited. Unfortunately, his playing time has been rather limited.
Injuries have been unkind to Musiala… after having just returned from an ankle injury that had him sidelined for half a year, the player has suffered a setback, with a flare-up of pain at the very same spot. Caution needs to be exercised, and that is exactly
what the player and the club have in mind.
According to a report by Kicker’s Mario Krischel (@m_krischel) as captured by @iMiaSanMia, “Musiala is currently putting in up to 8 hours of work everyday, both at Säbener Straße and at home. The player won’t rush anything after this most recent setback and will only return once the pain in his ankle has subsided.”
The report adds that “the current plan is for him to rejoin team training at some point next week and be gradually eased back into action through short appearances.” This is certainly the right way to go, since a re-injury could hamper the career of a player whose talent level has no real ceiling. Musiala is a once-in-a-generation player, and it is important to manage the load and ease him into the starting XI after an injury of such magnitude.
Importantly, the report also mentions that “Musiala has the first leg against Real Madrid in mind and wants to be involved. Since Bayern have performed very well in his absence so far, and considering they have Serge Gnabry and Lennart Karl as alternatives, Musiala will be given more time to get back to full fitness, since everyone would benefit from having him fully fit.” A potential return around the time of the first fixture could be massive, especially if the player could contribute meaningful minutes. We are all well aware of how dangerous Musiala can be in the final third… the player’s otherworldly dribbling ability, vision, and positioning could open up opportunities in an otherwise clogged Real Madrid box.
The report concluded with a crucial detail, “As for the player himself, being involved against Real Madrid is his short-term aim right now—and the big goal is being at his best for the World Cup in the summer.” This is totally understandable, since Musiala will be instrumental to anything Germany wishes to achieve. The German national team needs the player BADLY… he could be that creative spark, that X factor that the team has so desperately lacked at times in the past.
Of course, him combining with Florian Wirtz and Lennart Karl behind Newcastle’s Nick Woltemade would make the German NT a scary proposition to deal with.
