Bayern Munich defender Dayot Upamecano had a strong EURO 2024 campaign despite seeing his side fall to Spain in the semifinals. He defended resolutely and showed a confidence that was sometimes lacking in the past season at Bayern. Nonetheless, Upamecano’s talents are no secret and he has to learn by defending in training against one of the most talented youngsters in the game, Jamal Musiala. According to @lequipe via @iMiaSanMia, Upamecano is awed by Musiala:
Dayot Upamecano on Jamal Musiala: “Musiala is a magician. You really have to sleep early to be able to defend against him [laughs]. You can’t anticipate anything with him, he dances with the ball. He turns around so easily and so quickly. Sometimes in training I deliberately send… pic.twitter.com/hM27LWSZIR
— Bayern & Germany (@iMiaSanMia) June 15, 2024 Here are Upa’s words in full:
Musiala is a magician. You really have to sleep early to be able to defend against him [laughs]. You can’t anticipate anything with him, he dances with the ball. He turns around so easily and so quickly. Sometimes in training I deliberately send him strong passes, and with one touch he manages to turn around. He impresses me.
Young Musiala might have been the player of the tournament had Germany managed to edge Spain in the quarterfinals. If he improves his decision making, he might see himself rise to the levels of Arjen Robben and Franck Ribéry.