Fuss about Bayern super talent
Trouble about Karl? “He apologized the next day”
Updated on January 6, 2026 – 8:46 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
Lennart Karl caused a stir with a thoughtless statement. And that’s why he even sought a conversation with the club bosses.
In the Salzburg stadium, surrounded by snow-covered mountain peaks, Lennart Karl continued where he left off before the break in FC Bayern’s only friendly match this winter break. The 17-year-old contributed two goals and an assist to the 5-0 win at Red Bull Salzburg, swirled in the Munich attack and once again made a strong impression. What was noticeable on Tuesday evening: Karl gestured with his palms down when celebrating the goal. He probably wanted to signal in freezing temperatures of -7 degrees Celsius: “Stay cool, stay calm.”
The offensive player had only caused a stir a few days ago with a public “flirting” with Real Madrid during a visit to the fan club. But now the matter seems to have been resolved:
“A 17-year-old can make mistakes sometimes,” explained Bayern sports director Max Eberl after the 5-0 win in the mixed zone and reported: “He was at the fan club and came to us the day after and said: I think I said something not so good. Something that could be misinterpreted.” Eberl explained that he himself perceived the situation as “completely relaxed.”
“That’s Lenny,” added Bayern sports director Christoph Freund on Servus TV. “That’s how he plays football! He wears his heart on his sleeve. He doesn’t give a shit, we say – even on the pitch. He talks like a 17-year-old boy.” Karl was immediately aware “that it was unfortunate. He apologized the next day and we talked about it.” The young star feels “extremely comfortable at FC Bayern. He’s enjoying this time right now.”
FC Bayern is “a very big club. It’s a dream to play there,” Karl said last Sunday, but at the same time added: “At some point I definitely want to go to Real Madrid. That’s my dream club.” According to t-online information, these statements did not cause much excitement among the Bayern bosses. They were classified as somewhat unfortunate, but not dramatic either.
“He shows his performance on the pitch. He knows what he has here and he emphasized that to us again. That’s what counts,” said Eberl. “A 17-year-old is allowed to make a mistake sometimes. He’s allowed to say something in his euphoria that afterwards he says: ‘I could have done that differently.'” And further: “He’s no longer the Lenny that nobody knows, but he’s Lennart Karl, from whom all of Germany now knows what he can do and what he is. He’ll learn that.”