She got Olise to talk! TV reporter reveals her “secret” | OneFootball

Michael Olise and interviews—that’s become a story all its own at FC Bayern. The Frenchman is usually conspicuously reserved in front of the cameras and even skipped the “Man of the Match” interview after his stellar performance in the 7-0 win over Union Berlin. However, the 24-year-old made an exception for Brazilian journalist Isabela Pagliari.

In the tunnels of the Allianz Arena, Olise not only accepted a personally autographed Neymar jersey but also answered questions from the CazéTV reporter. In an interview with BILD, Pagliari now explained how this unusually candid appearance came about.

The 36-year-old, however, doesn’t want to hear anything about a special trick. “Only Michael can explain why he felt comfortable talking to me at that moment.”

“I wouldn’t claim that I got him to open up. Only Michael can explain why he felt comfortable talking to me at that moment. I can only describe how I approached him. I’d been told beforehand that he’d probably just take the Neymar jersey I’d brought him, say thank you, and walk away.”

The idea for the special gift came about even before her trip to Munich. Pagliari had seen on Instagram that Olise had named Neymar when asked who the greatest player of all time was. Since the journalist knew the Brazilian from his time at Paris Saint-Germain, she reached out to him.

“A week before I left for Germany, I was at the gym scrolling through Instagram. There, Olise answered a question about the greatest of all time with ‘Neymar.’ I immediately sent Neymar a message and told him about it. We know each other well from his time in Paris. Within three days, a new jersey, signed especially for Michael, arrived at my place. Neymar then asked me for something in return—namely, a jersey from Michael.”

Olise later fulfilled that request as well. The Bayern star got one of his own jerseys, signed it, and gave it to Pagliari to pass on to Neymar.

Saibari coaxed Olise out of the locker room

Photo: IMAGO

However, the meeting almost didn’t happen at all. After the game, Pagliari had already interviewed Harry Kane and Ismael Saibari, but there was initially no sign of Olise.

“After the game, I interviewed Kane and Saibari, but Michael still hadn’t shown up. I told Saibari that I wanted to give Michael a jersey signed by Neymar. And I asked him if he could let him know. He immediately said, ‘I’ll go tell him.’ And he went back inside.”

Shortly afterward, Olise appeared. Pagliari already knew him from a previous interview during the World Cup. From her perspective, that likely helped make the situation seem more natural.

“Can I give you a hug?”

“When Michael arrived, the camera was already rolling. The first thing I asked was, ‘Can I give you a hug?’ He said yes, I hugged him, and then handed him Neymar’s jersey. I think the fact that we’d met before helped make the interaction feel more natural. But above all, the gesture was sincere. I wanted to give him something meaningful and not use the jersey as a means to get an interview.”

Pagliari’s assessment of Olise’s personality is also interesting. Before their first meeting, she had researched the Bayern star. She was told that his quiet demeanor wasn’t a deliberately staged public image.

“I was told that he isn’t trying to project a certain image. Rather, he is naturally a quiet, reserved, and shy person. When he’s surrounded by people he knows, he can naturally open up more.”

The experience after the Union game seems to confirm this assessment, at least from her perspective. “Michael seemed genuinely happy when he received the jersey. He smiled, seemed relaxed, and immediately fetched one of his own jerseys to sign for Neymar.”

Thus, on an evening when his renewed refusal to give an interview sparked discussion, Olise provided a rare glimpse into a side of his personality that is seldom seen in public.