On Saturday (8:30 p.m.) in the MLS playoff final, two superstars of world football, Thomas Müller and Lionel Messi, will meet in a direct duel. The balance of the previous duels between Müller and Messi speaks a clear – and quite surprising – language.
In the past 15 years, Thomas Müller and Lionel Messi played against each other in a total of eight competitive games – twice with their national team at a World Cup and six times at club level.
The 36-year-old German will remember the games at the World Cup particularly well: the quarter-finals at the 2010 World Cup are still considered one of the best international matches for the DFB team in recent decades.
Argentina’s team, in which Messi had already become a world star, had no chance at all at 4-0. Müller headed in to give Germany the lead in the third minute.
In the pair’s second World Cup duel, the original Bavarian failed to score his own goal, but the 1-0 win in the final of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil was Müller’s career highlight to date. Back then, too, Messi was on the pitch for the full game time.
Only a Messi win against FC Bayern with Thomas Müller
At club level, the six-time world footballer also suffered bitter defeats against Müller.
During his long era at FC Barcelona, there were, among other things, defeats against FC Bayern in the semi-final duels of the Champions League in spring 2013. In the 0:4 and 0:3 from Barca’s perspective, Müller was one of the big heroes with a total of three goals, while Messi had no chance.
The 8-2 defeat against FC Bayern in the Champions League final tournament in August 2020 is also unforgettable. On the way to winning the Henkelpott, Müller also scored twice in this duel, while La Pulga had no direct involvement in the goal.
The last time Müller and Messi met was around two and a half years ago. The Argentine was already under contract with Paris Saint-Germain at the time and lost both games (0-1 and 0-2) in the round of 16 of the Champions League against FC Bayern. Müller once again had the upper hand against the 2022 world champion.
Incidentally, Messi’s only competitive win against Thomas Müller dates back to May 6, 2015. At that time, FC Barcelona beat FC Bayern 3-0 in the CL semi-finals thanks to two Messi goals and won the premier class title a little later.
At the weekend, Müller made no secret of how much he was looking forward to another duel with the “greatest player who has ever played”. He admitted: “I was hoping for this final.”