Mueller, the Paehl hero

Munich - Many young Bavarians would love to follow Mueller's path and lift the Champions League and World Cup for club and country

In the rolling foothills of the Bavarian alps, where cows lazily chew grass on sun-drenched meadows, Germany and Bayern Munich star Thomas Mueller is the pride of his ex-club TSV Paehl.
"Did you know that the nicest, most popular and probably Germany's best current footballer - Thomas Mueller - learnt to play football in the youth teams of TSV Paehl until he was 10?," the club proudly boasts on its website as it invites youth recruits.
Many young Bavarians would love to follow Mueller's path and lift the Champions League and World Cup for club and country.
Paehl, 50 kilometres (30 miles) south of Munich, is where Mueller, 26, grew up and played football before joining Bayern's academy, just before his 11th birthday.
He won the 2013 treble of Champions League, German league and cup titles with Bayern then the 2014 World Cup with 'Die Mannschaft' and has made more than 70 appearances for Germany since his 2010 debut.
Mueller's parents and relatives still live in Paehl. Younger brother Simon is an attacking midfielder for TSV's first team in the Bavarian regional league and has a backroom job at FC Bayern. Thomas Mueller lives near Paehl, but often returns home to play cards with friends and watch his brother play.
"He's the same person he always was, very grounded. He doesn't act like a star at all," his former coach at TSV Paehl Wolfgang Czerwenka said. "We're all very proud of him and he hasn't forgotten us. Through his connections, new balls or sets of playing shirts often find their way here."
When TSV struggled to replace the clubhouse roof, Mueller donated 20,000 euros ($22,500) so the work could go ahead. A group from TSV Paehl regularly travel to Bayern's games - home and away - to watch Mueller play. - AFP
"You could see in the first few years that he had talent," Alfred Greiner, who runs TSV's football section, said.
"He worked hard, could do things the other children couldn't and never seemed to get injured."
Even today, Mueller is rarely injured.