Seeing French wingers thrive at Bayern is a real tradition at this point.
Franck Ribéry’s retirement in 2019, alongside Arjen Robben’s, left Bayern Munich with quite the difficult task. How can a team replace legendary players like Robbery? Fellow frenchman Kingsley Coman would be the player that replaced Ribéry and, though the Frenchman has had many phenomenal moments in a Bayern shirt such as scoring the winner in the 2020 Champions League final, it seems that his time in Munich, via certain reports, is coming to an end.
Therefore, it was utterly vital that Bayern kept the tradition of French wingers at Bayern alive. They did so by signing Michael Olise in 2024, with the former Crystal Palace player proving to be a big success so far. With Ribéry sitting down to hold an interview with Bayern’s official website, the time was right for the original maverick French winger to give his thoughts on his successor.
“I’m very pleased with his performance so far,” the former Olympique Marseille player said. “Of course, what makes him special for me is that he’s also French – I’m always happy when French players play for Bayern. Olise is a good lad – he thrives on being young, carefree, and having fun. He has to maintain all of that, even if he stays at Bayern longer, and not let himself be overwhelmed by the pressure that always prevails at Bayern,” Ribéry stated.
But another player reminiscent of Ribéry with his close control and dribbling is Jamal Musiala. What are Ribéry’s thoughts on the young German?
“Jamal is a very unique player, and so is Michael. Even if they don’t play the way I do, they are unique and enormously important for Bayern. The trick is to see football as a game and to enjoy it. When you’re young, people’s expectations are naturally high, and they’re constantly rising. But we footballers aren’t machines. I got to know Jamal in training when I watched him. I told him he had to keep playing like that and he had to stay at Bayern. It’s a bit like having a little brother.”
