#lennart-karl

#lennart-karl

"He brings a lot to the table, is carefree, has a playful wit. I'm always of the opinion that it should be based on performance - no matter if someone's 17, 18 or 25. It should also be based on character: Does he fit into the team? In that case, age doesn't matter."

Lenny made a great impression in both games. He's a very good player. That was a small step forward. Now I hope he stays humble, keeps pushing and gets a few more appearances at Bayern.

I was at my math tutoring session. Then Julian Nagelsmann called me. I didn't answer at first, but I called back after five minutes and was very happy to hear that I was called up.

I'd say: believe in yourself. Of course, you need a family that's 100% behind you. My parents used to drive me to training, a 45-minute drive each way. You also need a solid circle of friends and shouldn't let yourself be talked into doing silly things like smoking. My friends are perfect; they always have my back.

The biggest differences are clearly the physicality and intensity; the training is much more strenuous than in youth football. I can't compare dribbling against a 17-year-old to dribbling against [Bayern teammate] Dayot Upamecano.

I was sometimes surprised at how everything turned out. But I always thought I could do it. So I persevered and worked hard. I'm very satisfied, but of course there's always room for improvement. Hopefully I can score more goals, provide more assists, and deliver even better performances.

That said, Lennart Karl has been scoring at a similar rate in his young Champions League career so far, with three goals in five outings. The 17-year-old attacker is now on the verge of another milestone: should he feature on Wednesday, it will be his sixth Champions League appearance before his 18th birthday. That would draw him level with Julian Draxler in this statistic, with only Youssoufa Moukoko having made more appearances in Europe's elite competition before turning 18 (eight).