Given she has played just one season in the Bundesliga, it is going to be fascinating to see what Baum's next step is and how she adjusts to it. She does not have a lot of experience at the very highest level, but she does at least have a few seasons under her belt in the senior game, even if all-but-one came at a lower level.
Previously, there might have been more concern about a potential move to Arsenal, the front-runners for Baum's signature. The Gunners have signed several young players in recent years but struggled to integrate them into the first-team, such asKathrine Kuhl,Rosa Kafaji andGio Queiroz. Smilla Holmberg's progress this season, though, is perhaps a sign that things will be different under Slegers, who only took the job on a permanent basis in January of last year.
Joining the north London side would be a fit in terms of the squad, too, as Slegers does like to rotate her wide players a lot, both game-by-game and during matches, often swapping the players on the wings around the hour mark with her subs. That gradual exposure to the Women's Super League could be helpful for Baum, given her relative inexperience, as could Slegers' tendency to choose her wide players depending on who is best-suited to the game at hand.
But a move to Arsenal is still no done deal. Could another giant, like Barca, Lyon or Bayern, snap up Baum instead? Despite all being huge clubs, all three have good track records with young players. London City or Manchester United, meanwhile, may be able to offer more regular game time to the 19-year-old from the get-go.
That decision is now for Baum and those closest to her. It's a big one, but all signs point to her being a level-headed individual capable of making the right call.
"My goal isn't to be a star, I mainly want to be happy with what I do," she toldDie Welt earlier this year, in an interview which saw her dismiss the idea ofnext summer's senior World Cup being a goal for her, withthe home European Championship in 2029 instead a target. That long-term thinking and grounded nature, combined with such wonderful talent, could take Baum far.