Joe Cole Admits He Knew 'Skinny Little Thing' Would Become World Beater at 15

Joe Cole was full of praise for Jamal Musiala as he started his first game for Bayern since suffering a broken fibula and dislocated ankle at last summer’s FIFA Club World Cup.

Musiala was sidelined after colliding with then-Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma during the quarter-finals of the Club World Cup in the US.

The German had been out of action for around six months but returned to Bundesliga action with Bayern earlier in January.

On Wednesday (January 28), he started his first match in 207 days as Vincent Kompany’s side travelled to Eindhoven, where they faced Dutch side PSV at the Philips Stadium.

And to the delight of Bayern fans, his teammates and Cole, who was watching for TNT Sports, the Germany international netted a 58th-minute strike to give the Bundesliga outfit the lead.

Former Chelsea midfielder Cole was quick to praise the 22-year-old and even claimed that he knew he would become a top-class player after watching him play for Chelsea’s academy as a 15-year-old.

After telling the panel that he “coached him at Chelsea a few times”, Cole explained: “I remember joining in a session with him, and I was 38 at the time, and he was 15. He was so talented but so strong. A skinny little thing but you thought to yourself, ‘He’s gonna be a top player’. But I didn’t realise how quickly he would become a top player.”

Musiala played for Chelsea's youth set-up for eight years before joining Bayern in 2019 as a 16-year-old. The attacker also represented England up until Under-21 level before switching his allegiance to Germany, for whom he has since earned 40 caps.

For Chelsea and England, Musiala is certainly one that got away and would've likely been integral for both the London club and national side.

However, in a 2025 interview with The Athletic, he explained the reasons for his career choices.

“It wasn’t planned that we would leave England to go back to Germany,” the Bayern star said. “I had just finished my school exams, and I was enjoying being at Chelsea. But then Bayern came in and, again, it just felt right to try something new. I knew how big Bayern were and, in the end, I just thought, ‘Why not? Take the chance — go for it, and let’s see if it works out’. I never try to think too much about what could go wrong in these moments. I’d much rather trust myself and go with the flow.”