Thomas Müller (German pronunciation: [?to?mas ?m?l?]; born 13 September 1989) is a German professional footballer who plays for and vice-captains Bayern Munich and the German national team. A versatile player, Müller plays as a midfielder or forward, and has been deployed in a variety of attacking roles – as an attacking midfielder, second striker, centre forward and on either wing. He has been praised for his positioning, teamwork and stamina, work-rate, and has shown consistency in both scoring and creating goals.[3] A product of Bayern's youth system, he made his first-team breakthrough in the 2009–10 season after Louis van Gaal was appointed as the main coach; he played almost every game as the club won the league and cup double and reached the Champions League final. Müller scored 23 goals in the 2012–13 season as Bayern won a historic treble; the league title, cup and Champions League. Müller earned a call-up to the German national team in 2010. At the 2010 World Cup he scored five goals in six appearances as Germany finished in third place. He was named the Best Young Player of the tournament and won the Golden Boot as the tournament's top scorer, with five goals and three assists. At the 2014 World Cup he played a major role in helping the team win the trophy, scoring five goals and receiving the Silver Ball as the tournament's second top player and the Silver Boot as the second top goalscorer, and was also named in the World Cup All Star XI and in the Dream Team. In 2014, Müller was ranked the fifth-best footballer in the world by The Guardian.[4]
