A Progress Report on Bayern Munich Youngster Toni Trograncic

In January of 2015, the teenage transfer sensation throughout Europe was that of Martin Odegaard to Real Madrid. Any club would have liked to have signed the young Norwegian starlet, but Real managed to seal the deal.

Bayern Munich may have missed out on Odegaard, but they already had teenage super-talent of their own, Toni Trograncic. Born on the first day of the new millennium in the Bavarian town of Bad Aibling (just under an hour's drive southeast of Munich), Trograncic is over a year younger than Odegaard, but he caused more than a ripple when he was invited to train with the Bayern first team last March. Per Marca, Hermann Gerland extended an invitation to the then-15-year-old, who was observed by some 200 fans.

After the session, Goal reported that Trograncic stung Pepe Reina's gloves and wasn't afraid to tackle, and trainer Pep Guardiola responded positively: "Everything was great. But next time, kid, bring the right boots!"

Headlines around the world reported the story of Trograncic's promotion, as the Marca article labeled him "Guardiola's latest gem," while German source Ran's headline suggested he might be "the New Thiago." Over the last year, though, there has been precious little reported about the youngster. He still plays at a very low level. And, eligible to play for both Croatia and Germany, he hasn't (according to Transfermarkt) represented either country's youth national team since playing for Croatia's under-14 side in 2014. Thus, the rising midfielder has become a well-kept secret.

Trograncic finished the season with Bayern's under-15 side in the C-Junioren Bundesliga; per FuPa, the Roten placed second in the league table, nine points behind champions Unterhaching.

Although he has not since been recalled to the Bayern senior team, Trograncic has since taken the expected next step in his career. He currently plays with Bayern's under-16 team. Because the under-17 side competes in the B-Junioren Bundesliga (a league in which under-16 and under-17 teams are eligible), the young central midfielder's side is stuck a level below, in the B-Junioren Regionalliga, which garners very little publicity. Various reports from the official German language page of the official Bayern website cite him as having scored five goals for the under-15 side in 2014-15 plus two more for the under-16s in the current campaign. His goals this season have come as a late consolation score in a 2-1 loss to Ansbach and the fifth in a 5-1 win against Viktoria Aschaffenburg.

Trograncic's teammate at the under-16 level, Christian Fruchtl, was called up to the senior team's winter training camp in January. Also born in the first month of the year 2000, Fruchtl has since been promoted to the under-17 side. But in terms of physical development, there is no comparison: Fruchtl is listed (via Transfermarkt) at 1.90 meters in height and is already taller than many full senior players in his position. Trograncic still very much looks to be a boy, and in all likelihood, he is being held in the under-16 team until next season for physical reasons rather than due to technical development.

His goals haul is encouraging, though, and if he continues to develop, Trograncic might well join the senior side within the next few years. Gerland and Guardiola noticed and recognized his talent days after his 15th birthday, so he has every reason to be confident. Next season, he'll likely be placed in the under-17 team, at least initially. But if he continues to develop physically, mentally and technically, he might well follow in Fruchtl's footsteps and be promoted ahead of his age class. In a team of increasingly international character, he could one day be the next great Bavarian star at Bayern Munich.

@Mr_Bundesliga