Lothar Matthäus responds to Uli Hoeneß’s doubts about Jamal Musiala. He views the public statement critically, though he partially agrees with the Bayern boss on the substance of the matter.
Uli Hoeneß’s comments about Jamal Musiala’s athletic future have sparked debate. Now Lothar Matthäus has weighed in. The all-time leader in appearances for the German national team questions whether the Bayern honorary president should have voiced his doubts publicly. On the substance of the matter, however, he does not fundamentally disagree with him.
“Uli Hoeneß’s words are very candid and honest, but they certainly won’t go over well with Musiala’s camp or with some people internally at FC Bayern. He’s saying what many people are thinking. I don’t know if it’s absolutely necessary to say that publicly, especially in the current situation. But Uli isn’t entirely wrong in what he’s saying. The situation is what it is, and we mustn’t turn a blind eye to it,” Matthäus told BILD.
Hoeneß had previously expressed public doubts on BR’s “Sonntags-Stammtisch” about Musiala’s return to his former form. He spoke both about Musiala’s illness and the offensive player’s long-term contract. Musiala is under contract with FC Bayern through 2030.
Matthäus also believes the financial responsibility lies with the club: “Bayern gave him this contract because they saw something special in him. It’s normal for a player’s market value to drop when he struggles over such a long period and can’t perform. That’s the case with every player. The risk lies with FC Bayern.”
Matthäus hopes Musiala will return to his former form
The backdrop to the debate is Musiala’s difficult journey since his serious injury at the Club World Cup in the summer of 2025. After suffering a fibula fracture and a dislocated ankle, the national team player fought his way back. Further health setbacks followed; due to his ascites, Musiala collapsed on the field twice. Most recently, he was sidelined with a muscle injury, but has since resumed participating in team training.
For Matthäus, however, the question of whether Musiala will return to his former level of performance remains open. “There’s no guarantee that Jamal will return to the level at which we all admired and loved him. And he played at the very, very highest level! It’s a sad story.”
The former World Player of the Year also made clear his personal connection to the Bayern Munich pro:“I have a good, personal relationship with the Musiala family, and of course I wish with all my heart that he’ll return to that level. Every soccer fan wishes that for him.”
Despite his doubts, Matthäus sees reasons for optimism. “The good news is: Jamal is only 23. And FC Bayern will do everything in its power to help him get back to his old self. Jamal is getting every conceivable kind of support, but it’s a long, long road and a lot of work.”
Matthäus also suspects that Hoeneß’s public statement is intended to spur the forward on. “Uli Hoeneß wants to set the bar high. If he’s wrong, he’ll be the happiest of all, and all Bayern fans will be happy with him—because then Jamal will be back!”
He therefore advises Musiala to use these statements to his advantage: “If I were in Musiala’s shoes, I’d take Uli’s comments as motivation to give it my all so I can come back even stronger,” said Matthäus. As an example, he referred to his own cruciate ligament tear in 1992: At the time, he hung a headline about the supposed end of his career in the gym and used it as extra motivation for his comeback.