FC Bayern: Mathys Tel talks about difficult beginnings – wants 15 goals

Never thought about changing

Although Mathys Tel only comes off the bench at FC Bayern, the talented striker has made a good start to the season. In the first four Bundesliga games, in which he was only on the pitch for a total of 54 minutes, the 18-year-old contributed two goals and one assist. Tel only needed an average of 64 minutes to score a total of seven Bundesliga goals so far. The Frenchman, who came from Stade Rennes for 20 million euros in the summer of 2022, believes he now has a different status in the Munich star ensemble.

“I took this step. I think I’m like any other player. “I feel like that,” Tel said in the “L’Equipe“-Interview. “The looks have changed. My teammates often come up to me and give me advice. We have developed a relationship in which I feel their trust.” As an example, the attacker Joshua Kimmich (28), who was particularly demanding, gave. “When I play a pass in training and it goes backwards a little, he yells at me like I did something crazy,” Tel said with a laugh. “And right after that he comes to me and says: ‘You know very well that I’m only doing this for your good, I want you to become a top player.'”

After just one year at FC Bayern he had become more mature and experienced. “I can reflect on myself and grow beyond myself when things are difficult. It was a quick change of worlds, so it was a bit jarring at first. The day I arrived I had never experienced this level,” said Tel, who also struggled with problems in the first few months. “I put a lot of pressure on myself. I didn’t score on the first two or three balls. In football they say: either you adapt or you die. I said to myself straight away: ‘If you’re here, then you have qualities, you have to have trust.’ Now I’m starting to shout, cheer and speak German in meetings.”

The conclusion for Bayern’s first season, in which Tel scored six times in 28 games, is positive. “Enriching, motivating, even if I had set a goal for assists and goals that I couldn’t achieve. That was frustrating,” admitted Tel, but for him other things were more important: “I have developed my game further: I have put it at the service of the collective, I dribble less, my way of thinking is different. For example, with my assist in the game against Leverkusen (2-2 last Friday; editor), I am 4,000 percent sure that I made a mistake and looked for the finish. Then I said to myself: If you want to make the difference, you have to give it to him.” Leon Goretzka (28) easily pushed in after a pass to make it 2-1.

Tel never thought about saying goodbye to FC Bayern – wants to score 15 goals

Tel had previously been linked to a number of clubs such as Tottenham, Werder and Marseille in the summer, but there were “at no time” any thoughts of a change. “I arrived here, I have a project, I have to stick to the project. Leaving wasn’t the best solution,” said Tel. “I’m at Bayern Munich, it’s a club that I’ve admired since my youth. Coming to this club awakened a certain ambition in me that has really grown. It was impossible to leave without achieving what I wanted.”

Even after the signing of star striker Harry Kane (30), who cost 100 million euros, there was no change in thinking. “Certainly he has a status, I have just arrived and am in the process of creating my own. But I’m ambitious, I’m determined,” said Tel. “I was very happy about his arrival, he’s a world-class striker. I played him on FIFA when I was younger (laughs). His mentality is impressive. He’s calm and confident.”

Despite the competition, Tel wants to make his breakthrough this season and is aiming for an ambitious goal. “I’m aiming for 15 goals and five assists, which is very ambitious. But I am a competitor. If I don’t make it, then I haven’t done everything right,” said the U19 national player, who wants to become number nine in Bayern’s ranks in the future. He’s not sure that he can do it, “but that’s what I want and I’ll do everything I can to achieve it.” Even if I have to bleed, suffer, spit and cry for it,” explained Tel, laughing, whose contract is said to have been automatically extended until 2027. “This is a dream for me.”

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