Why Thomas Muller Is the Star Capable of Transforming Manchester United

Thomas Muller would be just about the best signing Manchester United could make this summer.

Of course, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo would be the best signings any of the clubs they do not currently play for could make. But in the next tier down, Muller is the man who could have the biggest impact on the Red Devils' fortunes.

It appears it will be a difficult deal to pull off, but it is reported that United's interest is real. German journalist Christian Falk tweeted:

Muller himself seemed to all but confirm that a bid had come from somewhere, per Alex Richards of the Daily Mirror. Muller said, "A request from a big club is an honour and a reward that your performance is good." 

Sadly for United, he also said, "I feel well at Bayern, and my contract runs until 2019. There is nothing more to say on these speculations."

However, if there is any way United could prize him away from Bayern and bring him to Old Trafford, Louis van Gaal would immediately find a significant boost to his squad.

Firstly, he would not face the period of adaptation most players would undergo playing for Van Gaal. Speaking about the Dutchman, Muller said, per Simon Rice of the Independent, "It’s a secret for nobody. Louis van Gaal and I have a relationship that goes beyond that which is normal between a player and a coach."

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Given Muller's status at Bayern and their status in the world game, it is reasonably audacious for United to be attempting this signature. It is pure speculation, of course, but it is easy to imagine Van Gaal making Muller a high priority for the club's officials.

After all, it was Van Gaal who brought him through the ranks at Bayern. In an interview for Squawka with Pete Sharland, Muller said, "He saw something in me as a forward where some others didn’t." Van Gaal has clearly long been an admirer.

One of the reasons the German would be such a good fit is that he can play in so many positions. As Sharland writes:

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This season alone in the Bundesliga, he has played in seven different positions: up front, out wide, in the hole and even as a central midfielder.

How can a team prepare to stop Muller when they don’t even know where he’s going to be playing?

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Muller's greatest strength may be his Van Gaal-taught footballing intelligence. In the same interview, Muller said of his versatility:

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Playing lots of positions helps your all-round game, and that benefits you when you switch around. I like being versatile. For me, the key thing on a football pitch is to find space, and it has become what I’m on the pitch to do. I’m lucky now that I’m often allowed quite a lot of freedom to drop deep, or go wide, and find areas to be effective in.

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Assuming United play 4-3-3 next season, Muller would start more or less every game. He could lead the line, play in either wide forward berth or play ahead of two holding midfielders. If he did, the impact would likely be phenomenal.

Given that space was exactly what United's forwards failed to find during many of their poorer games last season, bringing in a specialist in space would be a masterstroke.

Kerstin Joensson/Associated Press

As Sharland points out, "Muller is such a unique player that he helped coin an entirely new phrase to describe his style of player: the Raumdeuter, or 'space investigator.'" 

It is a style that certainly works. Bleacher Report's Clark Whitney wrote on 8 June: 

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As a producer of goals, either by assisting or directly scoring, Muller is perhaps the best and most consistent player Bayern have had in decades. Per Transfermarkt, he's already recorded 120 goals and 105 assists in his still-young career. His sum of goals and assists has never been less than 31 in a season, his consistency exceeding even Robben and Ribery.

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Given that he has spent much of that time playing in a possession-focussed team, there would be no need for huge adaptation. Bayern have been domestically dominant in terms of results in a way that United have not of late.

However, United have, of course, been dominant in terms of possession, so many of the game situations in which Muller found himself would feel familiar.

Matthias Schrader/Associated Press

He could be exactly what United need to turn that possession into cutting edge. As well as the sheer number of goals and assists, there is also the fact that he has done it at the highest levels. He has Champions League and World Cup winners medals on his shelf, and he was instrumental in his side winning both.

Indeed, Muller is one of those players who carries himself as a winner, who lifts those around him and leads by example—albeit not necessarily in a moral sense given some of his on-pitch shenanigans.

He is a leader, a versatile player who creates space even against tightly packed defences, a scorer and a creator of goals with extensive experience of working with Van Gaal.

Muller would be United's dream signing this summer, and he would help transform the side.