Bayern Munich’s Jamal Musiala is flying high again

Bayern Munich’s Jamal Musiala got his second half of the season off to a rocky start. Fresh off Germany’s disappointments at the 2022 FIFA Men’s World Cup, the youngster appeared to struggle to conjure his usual magic — a flashy dribble here and there, but nothing singularly incisive through three tepid Bundesliga performances for the entire team.

Wednesday’s cup match ushered in a turning of fortunes — smashing home a fine left-footed strike from the edge of the box that looked very much like the Musiala that terrorized defenses all throughout the Hinrunde.

“Jamal played a world-class game,” concurred manager Julian Nagelsmann (via Sport1’s Kerry Hau). “Hardworking without end, top dribbles, a world-class goal, also great defensively. An outstanding achievement for his age.”

If manager and player are indeed struggling with communication as some reports have suggested, this was a public gesture of goodwill. But there were no signs of anything awry on the pitch. The intrepid youngster showed again that he’s lethal given space, and Nagelsmann accommodated by placing him in bigger tracts of land in the center of the park.

The result? A free-running Bambi who has picked himself up from his recent stumbles and looks set to prance away into the distance.

Interested in a more in-depth look at the match, including the formation/tactics deployed by Julian Nagelsmann, Joao Cancelo’s debut, and the amazing influence of Thomas Muller? Well, why not check out our postgame podcast? We talk about all that and more! Listen below or on Spotify.

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