Despite his impressive performance, German legend Lothar Matthäus believes Lennart Karl should not be overhyped.

German legend Lothar Matthäus recently stated that while Lennart Karl has repeatedly demonstrated outstanding ability on the field, he believes the young player's performance should not be overhyped.

With the 2026 World Cup just around the corner, players from various clubs have been actively engaged in national team friendlies and training. In an earlier friendly, Germany defeated Finland 4-0, thanks to a brace from Winduff, as well as goals from Wirtz and Musiala. Lennart Karl also contributed an assist in the match.

In the 2025/26 Bundesliga season, 18-year-old German midfielder Lennart Karl scored 5 goals and provided 5 assists for Bayern Munich. In the Champions League, he led by 4 goals and helped Kompany's team win the Bundesliga title with an amazing performance.

However, German legend Lothar Matthäus said, "Lennacht Karl, like Windav who scored twice, became the focus of attention through this match, but we shouldn't overreact. After all, this is just a friendly against Finland, not a match like the one against Ecuador in the World Cup, which would be a completely different situation."

"On the positive side, Nagelsmann has a very wide range of options. The team has many high-level players, and can make targeted deployments based on different opponents."

Speaking about Musiala, who had previously suffered a serious injury, Lothar Matthäus said, "It was very gratifying to see Musiala score the goal that sealed the 4-0 victory. Many people don't understand what it's like to recover from such a serious injury."

“For a player like this, you either give him your trust and support, or you simply don’t use him. Nagelsmann chose the former. He trusts Musiala because the national team coach knows what kind of ability he has. Every goal and every individual achievement will help him continue to move forward.”

Furthermore, Lothar Matthäus stated, "In midfield, Pavlovic and Nmecha started and performed their duties well. Nmecha, in particular, possesses the qualities required of a number 8 player."

“He is in excellent physical condition, has outstanding technical ability, and can dribble at high speed through the midfield area. Nmecha is one of the best all-around midfielders in the world today.”

Image source: Internet