Thomas Müller insists that his long and successful record against Lionel Messi will have no bearing when Vancouver Whitecaps face Inter Miami in the MLS Cup final on Saturday in Florida.
The 36-year-old German joined Vancouver in August after leaving Bayern Munich, and over the years has enjoyed notable success against Messi for both club and country. Müller has finished on the winning side in seven of their ten meetings, including Germany’s 1–0 victory over Argentina in the 2014 World Cup final.
Yet Müller is adamant that none of it offers an advantage going into this weekend’s showpiece.
“I look back at the past with comfort because it’s already written in the books, and I had some great experiences in those games,” Müller said. “But it doesn’t matter for Saturday. It’s a new match.”
He added that while past results might offer a “good feeling”, he doesn’t rely on history for confidence. “Maybe it gives you a little belief, but as a team and as an individual, I don’t need my history to feel confident.”
Vancouver also beat Messi’s Inter Miami twice during this season’s CONCACAF Champions Cup semi-finals, securing a 5–1 aggregate win. But Müller believes those results will be irrelevant once the final begins.
“They beat Inter Miami twice this season. But what does it mean?” he said. “It gives you a bit of confidence, but in the end the game is decided on the pitch and on Saturday, in the future. It’s a nice thing to talk about, and I hope we’re still talking about it after the match.”
Müller’s impressive history against Messi includes Bayern Munich’s famous 8–2 Champions League quarter-final win over Barcelona in 2020, in which he scored twice and was man of the match. He also featured in Bayern’s 2–0 win over Paris Saint-Germain in 2023 — Messi’s final appearance in European football.
