The making of Michael Olise: The quiet kid who came alive on the pitch | OneFootball

Michael Olise’s rise from west London parks to Bayern Munich has been lit by a signature left-foot strike to beat Real Madrid 4-3, completing a 6-4 quarter-final. He then scored a solo goal in a 5-4 defeat at Paris Saint-Germain in the semi-final first leg. The France international has 21 goals and 26 assists in his second season with the German champions and now readies for tonight’s second leg in Bavaria.

According to NY Times, former coaches recall a quiet, polite boy from Hayes who came alive on the pitch and drew queues of scouts to meet his parents, Mina and Vincent.

Born in White City and raised in Hayes near Heathrow, he joined Hayes & Yeading aged six, then moved via Old Isleworthians to Chelsea.

At Chelsea his talent was obvious, yet he could be nonconformist and was eventually released amid concerns over the full-time programme. A brief spell at Manchester City followed, but life away from home proved difficult and he departed.

Back in London he played for Sean Conlon’s programme and, on Darren Richards’ recommendation, trialled at Reading in August 2016. Coaches there backed his creativity and had few problems once clear standards were set.

He developed steadily, then exploded in 2020-21 with seven goals and 12 assists to win the EFL’s young player of the season. An eight million pound move to Crystal Palace followed, and his ascent continued.

He identifies with Great Britain and Nigeria through his father, and France and Algeria through his mother. Eligible for all four, he chose France and debuted for their under-18s at Toulon in 2019. Those close to him describe a perfectionist still chasing improvement.

Source: NY Times