When you think of most of the attacking players that have lit up this 2014 FIFA World Cup – they have been masters in the aesthetics of football. Lionel Messi, James Rodriguez and Arjen Robben are drool-worthy when in full flow, making you sit up and just nod your head in approval and awe. And then, you have Thomas Muller, the man who makes scoring goals at the World Cup look as easy as drinking a mug of beer (German beer, mind) on a warm Sunday afternoon.
Muller has been Germany's main man again at a World Cup, and while he might not be able to match up to the likes of Messi and Robben on the "what a gorgeous run and goal" stakes, there are few more lethal.
If there is anybody that could end Argentina and Messi's dream of winning the FIFA World Cup 2014 – it is Germany's premier poacher. Muller does not need too many chances, he does not need to have a million touches of the ball to be effective, he does not even have to be anywhere near involved in the build-up to the goal, just the final telling touch will do.
Muller has been dubbed the "Space Investigator" for a reason – there is probably no better player in football, at the moment, who just has the knack to find the right space, arrive at the best possible moment and put the ball into the back of the net easy as pie.
While his powers of finding space is unparalleled, it only seems to go up a notch at the World Cup – nobody seems to thrive on the biggest stage of them all more than Muller, who has already reached the five-goal mark, which won him the Golden Boot at the last World Cup.
Five goals will not get him the Golden Boot this time, though, as Rodriguez bowed out in the quarterfinals with six to his name, and that will only further motivate Muller to find the net a couple of times. As if scoring five goals weren't enough, Muller has also shown he is not just about finding the back of the net, he can set them up too – his all-round ability at this tournament is off the charts having also grabbed three assists, and the German machine shows no signs of stopping – ominous signs for Argentina.
All of the attention ahead of the final has gone to Messi, and rightly so. There really is only one other player in the world at the moment who can even remotely match up to his out-of-this-world talents.
Muller, though, defines this German team to the hilt – no fuss, no worries, just ridiculously superior machine-like efficiency, without worrying too much about the plaudits and headlines.
While Germany will pay a little bit of attention to Messi (not too much, they are Germany after all), the one man Argentina will be wary about, is Muller. The South Americans have been tremendous at the back at this World Cup in Brazil, but in Muller they will come up against a man who just knows where the back of the net is, and someone who will make goals look ridiculously easy.
So, watch out Argentina for those for those perfect runs, those perfect movements beyond the defender, those pinpoint passes and those top-of-the-draw finishes – otherwise it could turn out into another nightmare for a second South American team at this World Cup at the hands of Muller and Germany.
