Thomas Müller mourns Ronaldo’s failed move to FC Bayern | OneFootball

The idea alone made headlines for years: Cristiano Ronaldo in an FC Bayern shirt. Time and again, there was speculation about the international star’s potential move to Munich, especially as his time at Manchester United drew to a close in 2022. Now, looking back, Thomas Müller has explained why this scenario would have been appealing from a sporting perspective, but hardly realistic in the end

From Thomas Müller’s point of view, there is no question that Ronaldo could have helped FC Bayern on the pitch. „Ronaldo could have worked out athletically at Bayern. At the time, he was already a pure goalscorer and would certainly have scored his goals,“ explained the current MLS professional in an interview with Sport BILD

Especially in a team that consistently creates chances over the years, the Portuguese would have been a logical recipient with his finishing power

In fact, Ronaldo is said to have signaled his interest in a move to the German record champions through his management at the time. According to reports, there was even a meeting between his advisor Jorge Mendes and the then Bayern CEO Oliver Kahn. However, a concrete transfer never developed from this

It would probably have failed under Kompany

photo: IMAGO

However, the decisive factor for Müller is less Ronaldo’s individual class and more the question of tactical integration. „Whether he would have been able to integrate into the team and the style of play would have depended on the coach,“ says Müller. The 2014 world champion sees clear limits under current Bayern coach Vincent Kompany. „Let’s put it this way: it probably wouldn’t have worked under Kompany’s style of play, because there are eleven men working for each other in both directions.“

It is precisely this collective approach, which Kompany has given FC Bayern, that is the foundation of their current success. The willingness to run, counter-pressing and defensive cooperation of all players are key elements. A superstar like Ronaldo, focused on maximum efficiency in the penalty area, would have been difficult to fit into this concept

In the end, Ronaldo famously opted for a move to Saudi Arabia to join Al-Nassr, where he has been scoring goals since 2023. For FC Bayern, it remained a thought experiment – one that, according to Müller, had sporting charm but would hardly have been feasible in the context of the current playing concept.