Thomas Müller didn’t feel ready to take the captain’s armband for Vancouver Whitecaps FC, but lived up to the task in just his second MLS game, scoring the 3–2 winning goal in the 14th minute of second-half stoppage time vs. St. Louis CITY SC.
“I was not sure if I should take the armband right away. After one week is maybe not the best idea, but I’m leading anyway. I don’t need a captain’s band to do that,” said Müller. “The team pushed me…but in the end, it’s not a big deal, but it’s a little bit of an honor.”
The 35-year-old may only be two weeks into Whitecaps tenure, but he has quickly settled in, and that showed through in his most crucial moment yet, as he beat Roman Burkï with the late spot kick after a controversial VAR review.
“It was an amazing moment for me,” Müller said. “On one hand, we have this pressure because with a penalty, you have a good chance to score. But what happens if you miss? You’re [the journalists] already writing your news, ‘Thomas Müller missed a penalty.’”
Fittingly, the goal also came against a familiar goalkeeper in Burkï, who Müller had scored against five times previously in Der Klassiker matches between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund.
Yet, the win did not erase a problematic performance in Müller’s mind. He was not pleased with Vancouver’s finishing on a night that saw them post 3.53 xG compared to St. Louis’s 1.37 and outshoot the visitors 22–7.
“To be honest, we needed too many chances to score goals. That’s what my thoughts are after these two games,” Müller said. “It felt very dominant, but they scored twice, so it felt a little bit awkward. In this game, we had a good effort and we had a great mentality… In the end, it worked out in front of our fans.”
Now, though, the Whitecaps will look to three weeks without a single match after their clash against Orlando City SC was postponed due to the Lions’ advancing to the Leagues Cup semifinal against Inter Miami.
