Thomas Müller’s value to Bayern might be larger off the pitch

Bayern Munich mainstay, Thomas Müller, has recently found himself out of favour with the club’s coach Niko Kovac. The former German international has been on the bench for five consecutive matches and his situation doesn’t look like changing soon — as his “manufactured exit” seems more and more likely. However, it appears that Müller’s stature within the club remains high and a recent TZ article shed some light about the extent of his standing in the team, marketability and more.

Unsurprisingly, TZ alleges that Müller is unhappy about his current role at the club. Fortunately, being the team player he is, Müller doesn’t display signs of this discomfort to the public, evidenced through his recent Instagram post congratulating the team for their performance against Tottenham Hotspur — a match he didn’t take part in. Müller wrote:

This is why we love football. What a win. What a performance of Serge Gnabry.

In the trying summer transfer window, Bayern were rumored to be interested in Sebastian Haller and Max Kruse, among others, to be Robert Lewandowski’s backup at striker. Nevertheless, Müller’s dissatisfaction internally about signing a backup striker meant that Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and Uli Hoeness didn’t make a purchase. This displays how important he still is, probably due to being a vice-captain, senior player and fan-favorite. TZ said this about why Müller didn’t want another attacker on the team:

Internally, the former national player certainly expresses his displeasure when players are put in front of his nose. And he sees himself as the first choice when Lewy needs a break.

Another reason for his importance to the people in the boardroom is the fact that Müller’s value is represented by his marketability. Particularly in Asia, the horse-lover remains a big draw for the fans, a draw which can’t be ignored. In addition, he’s crucial for being one of the only Bavarians at Bayern and embodying the clubs famed “mia san mia” attitude.

Unfortunately, Müller’s standing off the pitch now seems far greater than his standing on it. Despite illustrating his unique skills in great performances in his favorite position, the Bavarian native has been continuously snubbed for a starting place and has not even been allowed to play minutes in CAM now. For the second time in the last three years, Müller has been replaced by a South American playmaker.

His downfall at the Allianz is further exemplified through his current run of five games on the bench. This run should be especially concerning for Müller given that these five games have happened to be on a tight schedule and that Müller has given good accounts of himself when asked to play — again shown through the attacking impetus and assist he added when coming on against Hoffenheim today.

Simply put, although Müller may not be first-choice on the pitch right now, he still is regarded highly off the field. No one knows what the future holds for Bayern’s number 25.