Opinion: With Bayern Munich’s Jamal Musiala in tow, Joachim Löw must bring back Thomas Müller back to Germany

The news that Bayern Munich’s Jamal Musiala has chosen Germany over both England and Nigeria for his international career is a huge win for Die Mannschaft, specifically Joachim Löw.

And Löw will take any victory he can get at this stage.

The veteran manager has not had the easiest times of late. Löw was put on notice from the DFB and has had multiple players openly calling for the 2014 World Cup winning manager to re-think his roster decisions.

With all of that in play, there is no better time for Löw put his pride aside and recall Thomas Müller, Jerome Boateng, and Mats Hummels to Germany.

As it pertains to Musiala, Müller’s inclusion should be considered vital. The 31-year-old is the perfect mentor for both club and country to help guide Musiala along the way as he tries to navigate his ascension from prospect to star.

Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

While Löw has been lambasted here and elsewhere for his decision to prematurely cut ties with the trio, he can rectify the situation by putting together his best possible roster for one last run at glory this summer at the Euro Championships.

Need rationale on why now it is more important than ever for Germany to have Müller, Boateng, and Hummels back in international play? Here you go:

• You can’t put together Germany’s best possible roster without them: Simply put, the trio might actually be performing better now than they did back when they were axed. Each player would be among the top 14 players for the Euros and have a legitimate chance to be a starter.
• The experiment failed: Löw might have thought he had a sound thought process in cutting ties when he did, but the timing was wrong, the method in which he cut the players was wrong, and his gamble that the young players were ready to “take over” flamed out incredibly.
• His roster selections have been terrible: Emre Can? Antonio Rüdiger? Jonathan Tah? Robin Gosens? Thilo Kehrer? Nadiem Amiri? Robin Koch? Julian Brandt? Mahmoud Dahoud? Julian Draxler? At no point have any of these players brought anything to the table that would be superior to what Müller, Boateng, and Hummels can offer. If you aren’t putting together the best roster, then you aren’t giving yourself the best chance to win...so what is the point?
• Now, the veterans can really help form a bridge from old-to-new: Müller, Boateng, and Hummels could join Toni Kroos, Marco Reus, and Manuel Neuer in helping make the generational transition. 2019 was not the right time to look toward the future, but after the 2022 World Cup would appear to be far more appropriate.

Back to Musiala, though, Germany was gifted this chance to capture one of the world’s brightest young talents. The DFB should ensure that the player has every opportunity to develop properly in international play. Assuredly, Bayern Munich teammates like Neuer, Joshua Kimmich, Leon Goretzka, Serge Gnabry, Niklas Süle, and Leroy Sané can help, but there is no person better equipped than Müller to really be the mentor Musiala needs.

This is a unique opportunity to cultivate the next great era of German soccer, but a lot of the young talents are not quite ready for the bright lights and big stage, so give them the extra time they need.

In the end, Löw should suck up his pride and pay the toll for the “Müller, Boateng, and Hummels Bridge.” Sure, he might have to encounter a few trolls along the way, but it would be a small price to pay for Germany’s present — and future — success.