The ‘Bomber of the Nation’ is the third top scorer in the World Cups, with 14 goals, one of which was the one that decided the 1974 final against the Netherlands
Only Leo Messi, in 2012, was able to surpass the record of 85 goals in a calendar year that the German striker signed in 1972
The nickname ‘Torpedo’ It was a perfect fit for this area predator who, from the mid-1960s to the end of the 1970s, shattered all scoring records in European football. The most outstanding, the 85 goals in a calendar year that remained in force until the appearance of a certain Leo Messi, who in 2012 raised that figure to 91.
But that was only the tip of the iceberg of a successful career, both at Bayern and with the West German national team. Gerd Müller is still today the only footballer to have scored in a European Cup, Euro Cup and World Cup final.
Two Golden Boots are on his record, 1970 (38 goals) and 1972 (40). He was the top scorer at the 1970 World Cup in Mexico (10) and remains the third highest scorer in the history of the tournament, with 14 goalsonly behind Miroslav Klose (16) and Ronaldo (15).
He is the seventh goalscorer in soccer history with 735 goals, 365 of them in the Bundesliga, which credits him as the top scorer in the German tournament. To this he adds seven top scorer trophies in the German League and four in the European Cup.
Müller burst into the 1970 World Cup in Mexico with force, scoring ten goals, with two hat tricks against Bulgaria and Peru and a brace in extra time in the semi-finals against Italy, but was left without the prize in the final, as the Nerazzurri won 3-4 in one of the so-called matches of the century. That World Cup, added to the titles won with Bayern, earned him his only Ballon d’Or. Müller had a thorn stuck in him and he pulled it out four years later at Germany 1974, scoring the goal that decided the final against the Netherlands (2-1). Between the two World Cup events he lifted the Euro Cup, with two doubles in the semifinal against Belgium (2-1) and the final against the Soviet Union (3-0). It was the first time that Germany participated.
Trajectory
Selection: West Germany
World Cups: Mexico 1970 and Germany 1974.
Caps international/Goals: 62 matches/68 goals.
Palmares: 1 World Cup (Germany 1974) and 1 Euro Cup (Belgium 1972). 1 World Cup top scorer trophy (1907) and 1 Eurocup top scorer trophy (1972).