Manuel Neuer confident Thomas Muller & Mats Hummels can take on leadership roles for Germany this summer

Joachim Low finally made the decision Germany fans had been baying for when he officially decided to reinstate Bayern Munich’s Thomas Muller and Borussia Dortmund’s Mats Hummels to the German national team squad for this summer’s European Championships.

The pair of veterans and Jerome Boateng were dismissed from the team in March 2019 and the decision was met with harsh criticism. Fast forward to now, and both Muller and Hummels have been performing consistently well for the clubs and are more than deserving of their recalls. Boateng has been solid, too, for that matter, but he was always the least likely to be recalled.

Speaking to Welt am Sonntag over the weekend (Abendzeitung), Manuel Neuer said he was confident that both Muller and Hummels can play key leadership roles for Die Mannschaft this summer. Muller just finished his second consecutive season as the Bundesliga’s leader in assists, having broken the single season record last season (21). He has been absolutely immense for Bayern these past two seasons. Neuer feels that Muller will be able to translate his success for Bayern to the national team this summer seamlessly. “We have seen what Thomas can achieve at FC Bayern in recent months. In terms of nature and his footballing class, he will immediately take on a leading role again,” Neuer explained.

Muller hasn’t featured for Germany since November 2018 in what was an underwhelming UEFA Nations League campaign following their group stage exit from the 2018 World Cup in Russia. There have been constant calls for Low to reinstate him between March 2019 and now, but Low has taken this long to make the decision after two incredible seasons for Bayern for Muller.

For Hummels, Neuer feels that his former teammate will help provide the necessary stability in Germany’s back line. “In a tournament every mistake is decisive, a stable defense is the basis for a successful European Championships and (Hummels) could be a decisive stabilizer,” Neuer explained. Hummels has certainly helped sure up Dortmund’s back line since going back there from Bayern despite Dortmund conceding more Bundesliga goals this season than their previous two, but Hummels is hardly to blame for it.