Childhood & Early Life
Müller was born on September 13, 1989, in Weilheim in Oberbayern, West Germany, to Klaudia and Gerhard. He grew up in Pähl, a village near his birthplace. He has a younger brother, Simon.
In 2000, he joined the local ‘Bundesliga’ team ‘Bayern Munich.’ He trained as part of the youth system of the club. He began his youth career with ‘TSV Pähl.’
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Career
In 2007, he was part of the ‘Bayern Munich’ youth team that finished as the runner-up in the ‘Under-19 Bundesliga.’ In August 2008, he made his full debut for ‘Bayern Munich,’ as a substitute in a ‘Bundesliga’ match against ‘Hamburger SV.’ He joined the German national team in 2010.
Müller first represented his country in 2004, as part of the ‘Under-16’ team of Germany. In November 2007, he was included in the German national ‘Under-19’ team to play against England. He was part of the German national ‘Under-21’ team in 2009 and made his debut against Turkey in a friendly match, which his team lost. However, in November 2009, he was part of the ‘Under-21’ team that beat ‘San Marino’ 11–0.
In 2009, Louis van Gaal was appointed as the new manager of ‘Bayern Munich and proved to be a great mentor for Müller. In February 2009, Müller joined the senior team of ‘Bayern Munich.’ In March 2009, he made his ‘Championship League’ debut in the ‘Bundesliga’ match against ‘Sporting CP,’ where he played as a substitute for Bastian Schweinsteiger. His first match proved to be profitable for ‘Bayern Munich,’ and the club won more matches and trophies with Müller as a team member. He was named as the best ‘Bundesliga’ rookie of the 2009–2010 season, with 13 goals and 10 assists.
In September 2009, he scored 2 goals against Germany’s top football club ‘Borussia Dortmund.’ He then scored 2 goals against ‘Maccabi Haifa’ and earned the honor of the ‘Bundesliga Player of the Month.’
In March 2010, he played his first match for the German national team, against Argentina. He played as a substitute for Toni Kroos, but his team lost the match 0–1.
After the 2010 ‘World Cup,’ he was part of the ‘Supercup’ match against ‘Schalke 04.’ He scored the opening goal in the 2–0 win. In the 2011–2012 season, in Bayern Munich’s first ‘DFB-Pokal,’ he earned two penalties and was declared the ‘Man of the Match.’ In March 2012, he played his 100th ‘Bundesliga’ match, against ‘FC Nürnberg.’
In the 2012–2013 season, he scored 23 goals to help ‘Bayern Munich’ win a historic treble: the league title, the cup, and the ‘Champions League.’ In the beginning of the 2012–2013 season, he helped the club score their eighth successive win by defeating ‘Fortuna Düsseldorf.’ He also helped his club score a 1–0 win over ‘Lille.’ His performance in the match against ‘Borussia Dortmund’ helped ‘Bayern Munich’ win the 2012 ‘DFL- Supercup.’
He then signed a two-year contract extension with ‘Bayern Munich.’ After the 2013–2014 season, Müller renewed his contract with ‘Bayern Munich’ and rejected an offer from ‘Manchester United.’ In the 2016–2017 season, his performance helped his team win the 2016 ‘DFL-Supercup’ against ‘Borussia Dortmund.’
Müller scored his first international goal at the 2010 ‘FIFA World Cup,’ against Australia, and led Germany to a 4–0 win. Germany reached the third place in the tournament, and Müller scored a total of 5 goals, which was the highest score of by any player in the tournament, thus winning him the ‘Golden Boot.’ He also earned the honors of the ‘FIFA World Cup Best Young Player’ and the ‘World Soccer Young Player of the Year’ that year.
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In ‘Euro 2012,’ Müller started all ten qualifying matches for Germany, with 7 assists. The team reached the semi-final round but lost to Italy.
In the 2014 ‘FIFA World Cup’ qualifiers, he scored Germany’s first goal, against Kazakhstan. He scored his first hat-trick in Germany’s opening match, against Portugal, and led Germany to a 4–0 win. His performance won him the ‘Man of the Match’ award. He was also included in the ‘World Cup All-Star’ team and the ‘World Cup Dream Team.’ He scored the opening goal in the semifinal match against Brazil and helped Germany score a 7–1 win.
Müller is the third player in history to have scored at least 5 goals in each of his first two ‘World Cups.’ His performance made Germany win the 2014 ‘FIFA World Cup.’ He was awarded the ‘Silver Boot’ for being the second top-scorer and the ‘Silver Ball’ for being the second-best player of the tournament.
He played for Germany at the ‘UEFA Euro’ in 2016, and his team reached the semi-final round of the tournament. However, he remained goal-less in the tournament.
Awards & Achievements
He received the 2010 ‘FIFA World Cup Golden Boot’ for being the top goal-scorer of the tournament. The same year, he earned three more honors: the ‘FIFA World Cup Best Young Player,’ the ‘World Soccer Young Player of the Year,’ and the ‘FIFA World Cup – Most Assists’ (3).
At the 2014 ‘FIFA World Cup,’ Müller won the ‘Silver Boot’ for being the second-best goal-scorer of the tournament. He also won the 2014 ‘FIFA World Cup Silver Ball’ for the being the second-best player of the tournament.
After the 2014 ‘FIFA World Cup,’ he was included in the ‘All-Star XI Team’ and the ‘Dream Team.’ In 2010, he won the ‘VdV Newcomer of the Year Award’ and the ‘Bravo Award.’ He was nominated for the ‘UEFA- Best Player in Europe’ honor for the 2012–2013 season.
