Oliver Kahn has advised Bayern Munich’s Jamal Musiala not to participate in the upcoming World Cup.
"He should pull out of the World Cup. If I feel that something isn’t quite right with my game, then I need to work on myself to get back to full fitness," Kahn told Sky on 'Triple – der Hagedorn-Fußballtalk' on Thursday evening.
Musiala suffered a fibula fracture last summer during the Club World Cup with FC Bayern Munich in a match against Paris Saint-Germain, an injury that sidelined him until mid-January. Since then, the 23-year-old has been slowly but steadily working his way back onto the pitch, though he is still a long way from reaching his previous level.
FC Bayern manager Vincent Kompany is therefore using him sparingly; since his comeback, he has completed 90 minutes in only one match. National-team coach Julian Nagelsmann also left him out of the squad for Germany’s most recent training camp.
“We know what he was capable of before the injury. And it was a very serious injury. The question isn’t only physical; it’s also mental: what’s going on in his head? Is he ready to tackle again at 100 percent?” Kahn added.
Jamal Musiala? “He needs to find his form.”
The former Bayern CEO advised Musiala to consider sitting out the upcoming tournament in the USA, Mexico and Canada and instead focus on regaining full fitness. “As a player, you ask yourself: is the World Cup even an option for me right now, or should I first concentrate on returning to my old level?” said Kahn.
Former international Dietmar Hamann echoes that view, warning that the 23-year-old faces a tough ask with less than seven weeks remaining before the tournament starts: “The World Cup isn’t on Jamal Musiala’s radar at the moment. He needs to focus on getting back into shape. Once he’s back to his best, everything else will fall into place. But time is running out. Everything has to go perfectly from now on.”
Nagelsmann will announce his 26-man squad on 12 May, with the final list due at FIFA by early June.
2026 World Cup: The schedule
Date |
Round |
|---|---|
11–27 June |
Group stage |
28 June–3 July |
Round of 32 |
4–7 July |
Round of 16 |
9–11 July |
Quarter-finals |
14–15 July |
Semi-finals |
18 July |
Third-place play-off |
19 July |
Final |