It all went from bad to worse for Bayern Munich in their 2-0 loss to Paris Saint-Germain in the FIFA Club World Cup quarterfinals clash in Atlanta, Georgia. After a strong performance throughout most of the first half from the German Rekordmeister, Jamal Musiala suffered a horrific leg and ankle injury after a coming together with PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma. Players near the incident immediately knew it was a serious due to the state of Musiala’s affected leg, as well as the screams of agony on the touchline.
It has since been reported that Musiala will be out of action for 4-5 months for Bayern and his injury came after defender Josip Stanišić also came off injured with an apparent hamstring problem. A 78th minute goal against the run of play from Désiré Doué just before PSG were shown two straight red cards set the stage for a cagey finish to the match. Ousmane Dembélé completely spoiled it for Bayern when he found the back of the net in the 96th minute on the tail end of a PSG counterattack, as Bayern had numbers committed forward in efforts to find an equalizer.
Speaking after the match, former Bayern and Germany midfielder Lothar Matthäus expressed his sheer shock at having seen what happened to Musiala and feels Bayern could now explore the option of a short-term contract for Thomas Müller. “Jamal Musiala’s injury totally shocked me, especially after he had fought his way back into the starting lineup. I wish him all the best. In this situation, FC Bayern should consider whether to give Thomas Müller a six-month contract. The season in the USA only starts by then, and in the meantime, he could be a great help to FC Bayern. Bayern did something similar with me when I moved to the New York Metro Stars. The fans would certainly be happy, too,” he proposed to Bild (via @iMiaSanMia).
Paris Saint-Germain v FC Bayern Munich: Quarter Final - FIFA Club World Cup 2025 Photo by Andrew J. Clark/ISI Photos/ISI Photos via Getty Images
With Müller and Leroy Sané gone, as well as Musiala now out for a long time, Vincent Kompany’s attacking depth is stretched pretty thin.
All of this coming on the heels of missing out on Florian Wirtz to Liverpool is a bitter pill to swallow. Matthäus certainly brings up an option that a lot of Bayern fans would warmly receive in trying to re-sign Müller to a half-year contract that wouldn’t affect his MLS schedule too much if he agrees to join a club there.
Looking for more thoughts and analysis on Bayern Munich’s devastating 2-0 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain at the Club World Cup — and a reaction to the horrific injury sustained by Jamal Musiala? Well, we have you covered with the latest edition of the Bavarian Podcast Works — Postgame Show. You can get the podcast on Patreon, Acast, Spotify, any leading podcast distributor, or below:
Also, be sure to stay tuned to Bavarian Podcast Works for all of your up to date coverage on Bayern Munich and Germany. Check us out on Patreon and follow us on Twitter @BavarianFBWorks, @BavarianPodcast @TheBarrelBlog, @BFWCyler, @2012nonexistent, @TommyAdams71 and more.