The German national Jamal Musiala is proving to be a powerhouse for Bayern Munich and his national team.
The teenager, who has often been nicknamed “Bambi” for his wholesome attitude and small stature, is today an essential member of the German squad for World Cup 2022.
In the 2022/23 season of the Bundesliga alone, he scored 9 goals in 14 matches played, marking the midfielder as one of the hottest up-and-comers in European football.
Born in Stuttgart, Germany to a Nigerian father and a German mother, Musiala first got the taste of football when his family moved to the German city of Fulda.
His family, with him and his siblings, Jarell and Latisha, moved to Southampton, England when he was only seven. He was recruited by Chelsea academy where he played from 2008-2019, before his transfer to Bayern for £180,000.
Jamal Musiala previously played for the England U17, U16, and U15 teams but ultimately pledged his allegiance to his fatherland. Making his World Cup debut, the youngster has a bright and promising career ahead of him, which he gives all credit to his parents.
Jamal Musiala was born to Nigerian origin Father
Jamal Musiala’s Nigerian-born father Daniel Richard once played at a high level in Nigeria before moving to Germany.
Ever since his son first started kicking the ball, he always supported him, accompanying him to his first-ever matches and personally coaching him at home.
“Rich was totally crazy about football. He was always running up and down the line to cheer Jamal on. After most games, he was sweating more than his son!” says Branko Milenkovski, the young boy’s coach in Fulda.
After his family’s move to Southampton, he was eager to enroll Jamal in a football club. Following numerous unsuccessful phone calls, he simply took his son to meet Jazz Bhatti, who ran the City Central Football Club – a recreational club where children mainly from underprivileged and immigrant families get a chance to play football. This meeting was successful, and Jazz invited Jamal to join the club’s U7 team.
Rosh Bhatti coached the U7s, and after seeing Jamal play for a few days, he immediately knew he had struck gold – the kid was brilliant.
“Rich kept saying what a special talent his son was and that he could go far if he could be placed in a big club’s junior section. A lot of people would have laughed at such a confident statement. I mean, what father wouldn’t say something like that about his son? But Rich was right,” Rosh said in an interview with goal.com.
Jamal Musiala’s mother drove him to practice
Jamal Musiala’s German native mother Carolin Musliala drove him to and from practice as he prepared to get his license.
She supported Jamal’s passion for football, attending his games, and calming watching him play, as opposed to the wild display of enthusiasm from her husband Rich.
Carolin Musiala was always an academic, moving from Stuttgart to Fulda and then to England in order to pursue her degree as a sociologist. The family’s first move from Stuttgart to Fulda was so that Carolin was starting her bachelor’s degree in social sciences there.
When she was given an opportunity to take part in a four-month Erasmus program at the University of Southampton as part of her master’s degree at Frankfurt’s Goethe University, the family moved again, this time to Southampton. Now seven, Jamal had to leave the TSV Lehnerz Club and received the opportunity to play for bigger clubs in England.
After the Erasmus program ended, she eventually got a job in London, which is why the family settled there.
TSV Lehnerz was Jamal Musiala’s first club
Musiala’s first club was TSV Lehnerz in Fulda which he joined when he was just four years old.
His then-coach, Micha Hoffmann, recalls him still as an exceptional talent from the rest. “Jamal was only four years old, but he did the exercises by himself without any fear,” he says.
Outside his football career, Jamal Musiala went to primary school at the Corpus Christi School in New Malden. For secondary school, he went to the Whitgift school in Croydon, where he received a prestigious scholarship. Even in school, he was a footballing legend, taking his school teams to glory in many tournaments.
Thanks to the Whitgift school’s partnership with the Chelsea FC Academy, he soon enrolled and spent most of his teen years as a Chelsea FC youth player. As his academy graduation was approaching, he passed his GCSE exams, marking the end of his academic career.
Despite being an amazing player in the U18 Chelsea and England teams, he ultimately decided to pursue his career in Germany, which many fans deem was the right choice, and it is clear to see why. Jamal Musiala is on the path to becoming one of the greats.