Thomas Müller jokes he's missing Manuel Neuer as Vancouver adventure begins
First up, flying without an old friend.
Aboard the plane taking him to Canada and Major League Soccer, Müller joked it was the first time in 15 years he'd flown without Manuel Neuer, the goalkeeper who's been his longtime teammate for Bayern and the German national team.
'I'm on my flight to Vancouver. I'm looking for the GOAT. Can you help me? I cannot find him anywhere,' Müller said in a video on Instagram.
'It's my first flight without Manuel Neuer since maybe 15 years, I don't know. I'm very excited to come to Vancouver to play for the Whitecaps. Fingers crossed for my first games. See you there.'
The 35-year-old forward admitted to feeling 'a little bit nervous' in comments to German broadcaster Sky Sport. 'It's the first time in a very long time that I'm joining a new team.'
Müller joined Bayern's academy as a 10-year-old in 2000 and had spent his entire career with the German champion, winning a record 13 Bundesliga titles, two Champions Leagues and the World Cup with Germany in 2014.
His last game for Bayern was a quarterfinal loss to Paris Saint-Germain at the Club World Cup in Atlanta, after a months-long farewell from the club. Bayern announced in April it wouldn't be extending his contract. Müller said he understood 'even if this did not reflect my personal wishes.'
The following weeks saw emotional scenes with teammates, club officials and fans as Müller hit personal milestones — passing his 500th Bundesliga game and 750th game in total for Bayern — and wrapped up yet another German title.
Vancouver said last week Müller will join the Whitecaps for the remainder of the season in an open roster spot, with a Designated Player option for 2026.
___
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
The Associated Press
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
25 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Slot says Liverpool set to sign teenage Italian defender but won't comment on Guehi
LIVERPOOL, England (AP) — Liverpool manager Arne Slot confirmed on Thursday an agreement reached with Parma to sign teenage defender Giovanni Leoni. Slot, however, refused to discuss any potential deal for another center back — England international Marc Guehi — and said any comments would need to come from his club, Crystal Palace. The 18-year-old Leoni previously played for Padova and Sampdoria before impressing at Parma after joining in the offseason of 2024. He is an Italy Under-19 international. 'The clubs have agreed (on) a deal but he hasn't signed for us yet,' Slot said of Leoni, 'so the moment when he signs for us, I can go into more detail.' On a possible deal for Guehi, who has one year left on his contract at Palace, Slot was more circumspect. He didn't mention the player's name specifically but did say 'unfortunately he was the captain of the team who we lost against last Sunday' — referring to Liverpool losing to Palace in the Community Shield on Sunday. 'If you want to have any talks about him, you should go to Palace and (manager Oliver) Glasner and ask his opinion about it,' Slot said at a news conference ahead of the first match of Liverpool's Premier League title defense, at home to Bournemouth on Friday. ___ AP soccer:
Yahoo
25 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Nathan Broadhead set for Wrexham medical
is set to join with the player now travelling for a medical ahead of becoming the new club record signing. The Welsh winger featured off the bench during Ipswich Town's opening game of the Championship season, 1-1 draw away to Birmingham City. That is likely to be Broadhead's final appearance for the Tractor Boys with the 27-year-old now on his way to join Wrexham. According to Sky Sports journalists Antony Joseph and Dharmesh Sheth, the player is on the way for a medical before concluding a deal worth £10 million. The deal is helped by Ipswich securing the signing of Chuba Akpom from Ajax earlier this week. Broadhead initially joined Ipswich Town from Everton midway through the 2022/23 season and has since featured 84 times for the club, scoring 23 goals.
New York Times
26 minutes ago
- New York Times
La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga odds: Which league is shaping up to have the closest race?
It's been a long and relatively quiet summer without top-level, competitive club football (if you exclude the Club World Cup) but that's all about to change again as we prepare for the European leagues to kick off. La Liga and Ligue 1 both get underway this weekend alongside the Premier League, but if you're an Italian or German football fan, you'll have to wait one more week before the season's action commences. Advertisement There weren't too many shocks in last season's title race across the European leagues as Barcelona won the Spanish title, Bayern Munich regained their crown from Bayer Leverkusen and PSG, of course, won the French crown with ease. But there was a surprise in Italy as Antonio Conte's Napoli edged out Inter Milan to win their fourth Scudetto. With lots of activity in the summer window, it should make for an even more competitive landscape across the board in Europe. Xabi Alonso is the new man in the dugout at Real Madrid and he has four new signings to challenge Barcelona with, including ex-Liverpool man Trent Alexander-Arnold. Bayern Munich are expected to cruise to the Bundesliga title after adding Liverpool's Luis Diaz, while nearest challengers Bayer Leverkusen have been significantly weakened after selling Florian Wirtz and Jeremie Frimpong to Liverpool. We all know how the Ligue 1 race will go, but Serie A looks like it's anyone's for the taking. Here's a look at each title race across Europe and the betting landscape for each one. Real Madrid are seen as slight favourites over Barcelona in this year's La Liga race, with Betfair backing them at 10/11, likely thanks to the momentum behind Los Blancos after picking up a new manager and a handful of new signings, including Alexander-Arnold, Bournemouth's Dean Huijsen and wunderkind Franco Mastantuono. Barcelona, meanwhile, are evens to win the title and might be slightly less favoured because of a lack of transfer action. Their only arrivals so far have been new goalkeeper Joan Garcia and the loan of Manchester United's Marcus Rashford, but Hansi Flick's side are still a massive threat to Madrid with superstars like Lamine Yamal, Raphinha and Pedri. They won last season's title by four points, scoring 102 goals in the process. You won't be shocked to hear that Atletico Madrid are the next best-backed side to win the league at 8/1 — while the rest of the chasing pack have much longer odds. You can have Villarreal and Athletic Bilbao at 66/1, while Real Betis are rated at 100/1. Last season was a special one for Bayern and manager Vincent Kompany as he helped them reclaim the Bundesliga title after being stunned by Bayer Leverkusen last season. It also meant Harry Kane captured the first trophy of his career. You would expect the same result again this season with Bayern being rated at 1/4 to retain their title. Advertisement Leverkusen are going to have an uphill battle to get back on top, given all the key players they've sold this summer. Defender Jonathan Tah even left Leverkusen for Bayern. That's reflected in much longer odds at 15/2. Before Leverkusen's triumph in 2024, the last time Bayern didn't win the league was when Borussia Dortmund won under Jurgen Klopp in 2012. That gives insight into how much the Munich outfit have dominated this division over the past two decades. The black and yellow side are priced at 11/1 to repeat that feat as the fourth favourites. Italy must have one of the most competitive divisions in Europe. Gone are the days when Juventus dominated year in, year out. Now you have at least four teams battling it out. Last season, it was Napoli and Inter Milan scrapping for the title, which was won by just one point as Antonio Conte's side needed a haul of 82. The year before, it was Inter who won the Scudetto as AC Milan finished runners-up, but last season they faltered and finished eighth. Atalanta finished third and underdogs Bologna ended up winning the Coppa Italia, so that gives you an idea of how open this year's Serie A could be. Of course, Napoli are going to be the favourites to defend their crown at 13/8, with Inter not far behind on 11/4 as they look to bounce back from finishing second in Serie A and runners-up in the Champions League final. Juventus haven't won Serie A since 2020 and they are trying to get back to the top. They're priced at 11/2 to win back the title, while Roma are at 11/1 and Atalanta are at 22/1. Any guesses who the best-backed team to win Ligue 1 is? Nope, no prizes for correctly picking PSG, who are overwhelming favourites at 1/12 to sum up the fact they've only twice failed to win the title in the last 13 years, since they were taken over by Qatari-run group QSI. Fresh off winning the Champions League under Luis Enrique, PSG will feel confident about easing to another French title, though it's not beyond the realms of possibilities that another side could shock them. Monaco are the next favourites for the title with Betfair, who are giving them odds of 16/1 to capture their first crown since 2017. Third favourites are Marseille at 18/1 after finishing as runners-up last season, though ultimately finishing 19 points adrift of PSG. Further down the pile, Lille are rated at 28/1 to win it and seven-time champions Lyon are at 40/1. Betting/odds links in this article are provided by partners of The Athletic. Restrictions may apply. The Athletic maintains full editorial independence. Partners have no control over or input into the reporting or editing process and do not review stories before publication. (Photo of Lamine Yamal: Alex Caparros / Getty Images) Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle
