bundesliga

Wonderful Wusiala - Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala draw great praise in Germany and beyond

14.02.2025

The pair of 21-year-olds have lit up the Bundesliga while fuelling their sides' title bids, and it is small wonder Bayer Leverkusen's Florian Wirtz and Bayern Munich's Jamal Musiala have attracted huge praise from England coach Thomas Tuchel, Germany boss Julian Nagelsmann and other major figures in football.

They are the two most sparkling diamonds in German football and have shined like never before this season. The prospect of Wirtz and Musiala going head-to-head as leaders Bayern lock horns with second-placed Leverkusen is an immensely enticing one. A mammoth 30 goal involvements between the pair this season (18 from Wirtz and 12 from Musiala) has sent many a tongue wagging in appreciation, even if it is hard to find words that do their talents justice.

Nagelsmann is in a better position to judge than most, having the pair at his disposal as Germany coach, and has given his thoughts on the development of their already spectacular playing styles. He says on Musiala: "Jamal has worked a lot on his presence in the box, both at club level and with the national team. He’s getting into the penalty area more often now and has started scoring with his head."

When it comes to Wirtz, the former Bayern coach added: "With Flo, you can see he plays in a slightly more efficient way; he’s very hard-working. Over the course of a long season, when you play as many games as Leverkusen, it makes sense to be selective with your energy and choose the right moments to go all in."

Watch: Joachim Löw on Musiala and Wirtz

It goes without saying that while the pair are incredible creative talents, there are crucial differences to their styles that make them both a delight in their own right. Former World Cup-winning Germany coach Joachim Löw said: "What distinguishes Jamal is his suppleness and movement in tight areas. His dribbling is one of his great strengths. Florian is a bit more direct - he is a bit more of a playmaker. He is always looking up and is ready to play the final pass."

England coach Tuchel - who formerly led Bayern, Borussia Dortmund and Mainz - is happy to reflect on the strength of the pair, saying: "They play a bit in different positions, but they are both super dribblers, very young and can be decisive for their teams. I can understand why comparisons are made."

Watch: How do Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala compare?

Before a recent DFB Cup quarter-final clash, Cologne coach Gerhard Struber described Wirtz in passing as the "German Messi from Cologne". That was put to Leverkusen boss Xabi Alonso the following day, who said: "I don't know about that. He's our Flo. We are very pleased he is with us though. He is a top, top talent. He's still young and has a great future - as well as a great present. He has a desire to get better every day and be a world-class player."

Wirtz's class has already caught attention around the world, with Diego Simeone saying ahead of Atlético Madrid and Leverkusen's recent Champions League meeting: "He is incredibly important for his team, can attack in various forms and contributes to his team's compactness." The Argentinian coaching legend compared Wirtz's presence between the lines to that of Antoine Griezmann.

Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz have played 67 matches for Germany between them (Musiala 38 and Wirtz 29). - IMAGO/Moritz Mueller

When it comes to Musiala, former Germany coach Hansi Flick, now in charge of Barcelona, provided succinct but glowing praise in saying: "It's just a delight to see him play!"

Current Bayern coach Vincent Kompany has compared his star protege to the likes of Zinédine Zidane and Ronaldinho, saying: "He is one of those kind of players." While honoury club president Uli Hoeneß has spoken of his desire to see Wirtz in a Bayern shirt one day, the world will get to enjoy them doing battle with their creative mastery in the big Matchday 22 showdown in Leverkusen.