Magical Thomas Muller the man making German machine tick

Who is the star of this Germany team? It was goalkeeper Manuel Neuer who joined Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi on a stage in January in Zurich when he came third in the Ballon D’Or vote for the world’s best player.

Perhaps that was no surprise, given that Germany has always viewed its goalkeepers as more significant than other nations. “The team is the star,” is the typical quote from anyone involved with the World Cup champions but this season, one man is threatening to change that dynamic.

Thomas Muller has scored 13 goals in 12 games this season, three of them for Germany, and Bayern rejected an offer of €120m for him this summer.