Germany’s new talisman is Jamal Musiala – the one that got away for England

He won every tackle, he completed every pass, and he earned a standing ovation from every German supporter shocked that a tournament on home turf could start with such a savage statement of intent. At just 21, Jamal Musiala set this European Championship alight with his electrifying pace, reducing Scotland’s haggard defenders to husks each time he dribbled past them for fun. And to think, this glittering young talent, who turned every one-on-one into a hopeless mismatch, was once wearing the colours of England.

It is a detail sometimes forgotten about Musiala’s rise that as a teenager, he was more than just a vague target on England’s wish-list. He was one of their internationals at every level from Under-15 to Under-21, who for 13 games was the No 11 to Jude Bellingham’s No 10.

Having moved to London at the age of seven, he spent three years at Whitgift School in Croydon before joining Chelsea’s academy full-time. Fast-forward three years and this mesmerising player, born in Stuttgart, finds himself the toast of Germany at their own tournament.

‌The salute from the stands for his performance was prolonged and sincere. Musiala’s display was as close to flawless as it is possible to be, adorned not just with an explosive strike to put Germany two clear but with countless feints that left Andy Robertson flailing in his shadow.

This is where the Bayern Munich star, son to a German mother and a Nigerian-British father, belongs now. But it could so easily have been different, with Gareth Southgate once admitting to irritation that he slipped England’s net. “We would have liked him to stay for certain,” he said.

‌So why did he switch? Why, having glided seamlessly through the youth ranks wearing the Three Lions, did he turn his back on England? Tempting as it is to dwell only on his pyrotechnics against Scotland, and to separate sport from politics, the answer lies partly in Brexit. Andrew Martin, Musiala’s former teacher at Whitgift, suggested the fateful decision was closely linked to the UK’s departure from the European Union, saying in 2021: “I think it may have been a part of it. Also his mother saw her home as Germany. Jamal was playing for Chelsea at the time, and Bayern Munich came in with the right offer. Then he was presented with a pathway into the national side. The rest is history.”

‌History is what Musiala has on his mind after this German masterclass. So irresistible was he in partnership with Florian Wirtz, three months his junior, that this was the first match at any Euros that two players aged 21 or under had scored for the same team. Granted, Scotland were abject, their flaws summed up by Angus Gunn’s flapping in goal and Ryan Porteous’s red card for a scandalously high challenge on Ilkay Gűndogan. But it was Musiala who did so much to unsettle them in the first place, with his balletic footwork making his opponents look leaden.

‌Germany were almost unrecognisable from the rabble who had exited the 2022 World Cup at the group stage. In Qatar, dysfunction abounded, with players rebelling against the dogmatic approach of Hansi Flick. His successor, Julian Nagelsmann, only 36, has restored the impetus and belief.

A vibrant touchline presence, he exhorted his side to surge forward at every opportunity, eventually seeing the reward with five goals and one virtuoso turn by Musiala.

‌“I think the Scots were impressed, too,” Nagelsmann said of Germany’s irresistible first 20 minutes. It set the tone for the evening, with Wirtz’s goal easing the first-night nerves and allowing Musiala to showcase his scintillating attacking flair.

It beggared belief how much time and space Musiala had on the edge of the area, shifting the ball out of his feet before smashing it beyond the helpless Gunn. Yawning gaps had been appearing all over the pitch, with Kai Havertz repeatedly looking to latch on to the ball in behind. It was not before time that he took his cue, unleashing Musiala to wreak havoc.

‌“Respect everyone, fear no one”: this had been Steve Clarke’s instruction ahead of Scotland’s daunting opener. But his team appeared consumed by fear, retreating ever deeper to prevent utter humiliation. When Niklas Fűllkrug scored the fourth with an explosive strike into the top-right corner, recorded at 68.9mph, the crowd erupted into applause. And they saved the loudest noise for the substitution of Musiala, replaced by the veteran Thomas Műller.

‌It was with acute embarrassment that Scotland’s players trudged off the Munich pitch, after what could only be described as a schooling. They arrived at this stadium a joyful throng but left it a bedraggled, ragtag army, with their team’s limitations thrown into the sharpest relief by Germany.

Antonio Rűdiger’s own goal offered scant consolation. It was Musiala, ultimately, who had inflicted the gravest damage, tearing a flaky defence to ribbons. The stage is set for this to be his championship, his moment to announce himself as a player of global significance.

That he could have been Southgate’s is, from an England perspective, the one sobering note.