Major League Soccer is more than halfway into the 2025 season, and the Philadelphia Union remain atop the Eastern Conference league table. Expectedly, such a prestigious position attracts the best soccer players from different parts of the world.
According to Sky Sports Germany, former World Cup winner and the most decorated player in Bundesliga history, Thomas Müller, was the latest admirer of the Union. However, the club’s sporting director Ernst Tanner, shunned the idea of a possible union between the German and the MLS side, stating the club’s philosophy and financial situation as his reasons.
Philadelphia Union snub Thomas Muller
With 37 points in 18 games, the Union are four points ahead of Cincinnati in second place. They also boast the second best defense in the league, with 19 goals conceded in 18 games. In six months, Bradley Carnell has been able to build a successful team of hungry players, who have not only developed their unique style of play, but have also understood their winning formula.
And from a neutral outlook, the missing piece might just be an experienced and talented player, like Müller, whose winning mentality could see the Union go all the way to clinch the Supporter’s Shield, and a possible MLS Cup for the first time in their history However, Ernst Tanner has his reasons for preventing the move.
“I’ve already been offered Thomas Müller. I still have a good relationship with Thomas’s advisors. But from a financial perspective, that’s absolutely unthinkable for us,” Tanner said to Sky Sports Germany.
Despite his reasons, the move for Müller seems the best choice, considering the absence of Union striker and MLS top goalscorer Tai Baribo, who was, until today, stuck in his home country with a calf injury. The forward has left the Nation following a shutdown of its airspace due to the ongoing conflict with Iran.
Tanner mentioned the negative impact that a high-salary player could have on the dressing room at this stage in the season, although it’s not like Müller is just any player. Nonetheless, the deal is off, and Ernst Tanner and his team would stick with their transfer philosophy of trusting young talents and giving them wings to fly. While it’s clearly paying off this season, the philosophy has its downsides as well.
REUTERS/Hannah Mckay
