Player profile

Having the surname Mueller certainly increases the pressure if you are a Bayern Munich player and young Thomas certainly has a long way to go if he is going to match the achievements of his namesake, Gerd, who scored an incredible 365 goals in 427 Bundesliga appearances for the club.

But ‘Der Bomber’, who also netted the winning goal in the 1974 World Cup final, has been very impressed by the impact this young striker has made saying: “The young guy is unbelievable, can play with right or left - just like me.”

It was Mueller’s hat-trick against Bochum that sealed the Bundesliga title for the Bavarian club and he was also influential in their run to the Champions League final. He made his international debut against Argentina in March in his home stadium and played 66 minutes before being substituted, but gave Germany a scare when he fell off a mountain bike during a training exercise in late May. Luckily, his injuries were only superficial.