While 17-year-old mega phenom Lennart Karl remains the hottest topic within German footballing circles, Karl’s Bayern Munich teammate Wisdom Mike has only logged six Bundesliga minutes this season. That doesn’t mean that the Germany U17 international isn’t headed for great things. Reputable German footballing publications claim that Bayern have big plans for the teenage talent in the new calendar year.
Mike signed a professional contract on the very same day that Karl did back in early August. Heading into the new season with an exceptionally small squad, the German record champions also accorded Mike a great deal of trust before competitive play in the current 2025/26 cycle commenced. At present, the German-Nigerian prepares to contest the U17 World Cup. First and foremost, Bayern officials hope Mike can accrue valuable experience there.
Mike and Germany U17 head coach Marc-Patrick Meister enter the forthcoming tournament (which begins today) as defending U17 World Champions. Current German women’s national team head coach Christian Wück famously led the German U17s to the ultimate glory in November 2023. Both Bayern head coach Vincent Kompany and FCB sporting director Christoph Freund are looking forward to seeing Mike in action at the Qatar-based tournament.
“I’m looking forward to his possible appearances at the World Cup,” Kompany remarked at a Champions League press conference yesterday. “He has taken important steps, trained with the first team, and played games. We want him to gain a sense of achievement which will prove important for his development. I’m looking forward to his World Cup and to what lies ahead for us.“
“I’m looking forward to seeing him play at the World Cup,” Freund added at yesterday’s UCL presser. “It’s also good that he will hopefully get a lot of playing time there. He struggled a bit, but has gotten used to the training volume and intensity. He’s still very, very young and has really pushed through in recent weeks. Now it’s important that he gets playing time. The U17 World Cup is certainly a good platform for that.”
