Jamal Musiala discusses his first World Cup, how far Germany can go and being likened to Lionel Messi

Speaking ahead of Germany‘s opening Group E game against Japan on Wednesday, Jamal Musiala took questions from the media discussing topics from Lothar Matthäus comparing him to Lionel Messi, his connection to England and how far Die Mannschaft can go in the 2022 World Cup.

.. on his first World Cup

“When I was younger, I looked at every player. At the 2014 final, for example, there were so many top players and Mario Götze’s goal was something special.”

.. on being compared to Messi

“To be compared to Messi is a huge honour. Messi has been playing at the top level all of his life but I’m focused on what I can do as Jamal. I always have to keep going.”

.. on what Germany can learn from England

“Germany is always a tournament team and are strong as a team. That’s what sets us apart. England have a lot of individual qualities in the team, the players go into the games with courage. We can take that from them.”

.. on training in England and his connection

“I played for England and I’m still happy when they win. That was my goal for a while, playing for England at Wembley. In the English youth setup you learn different things than in Germany. Especially in one-on-one situations and I took the courage with me and that will accompany me throughout my career.”

.. on how far Germany can go

“We have the quality to go far. We go in with the mindset that we can win the title. We believe in it and are all up for it to start now.”

Musiala comes into the World Cup in excellent form, scoring 12 and creating 10 in 22 games across all competitions for Bayern Munich this season. The 19-year-old is expected to make Flick’s first starting XI at the tournament alongside Serge Gnabry and Leroy Sané, who will play behind Kai Havertz.

Heading into Wednesday’s game against Japan, Germany doesn’t have any injury concerns. Niclas Füllkrug missed the first training session in Qatar with flu but has since returned to training.

Youssoufa Moukoko celebrated his 18th birthday on Sunday, just days after making his Germany debut. The Borussia Dortmund forward is in excellent form, scoring six and creating four in the Bundesliga.

GGFN | Daniel Pinder 

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