Who is Angelo Stiller, Stuttgart's midfield maestro called up by Germany?
Angelo Stiller made a splash as a talented youngster at Bayern Munich and showed his full promise during a sensational 2023/24 season for VfB Stuttgart. What else is there to know about the brilliant midfielder now in the Germany fold?
bundesliga.com outlines all the details…
Stats correct as of 29 August 2024
Angelo Stiller
Age: 23 (born 4 April 2001)
Position: Defensive midfielder
Country: Germany (17 U21 caps, two goals)
Key stats
Anchoring the Stuttgart midfield for 31 matches in 2023/24 as they sensationally pipped his boyhood club Bayern Munich to the runners-up spot was the catalyst for a first Germany call-up for two UEFA Nations League fixtures in September 2024, but much about Stiller's development suggested he was always destined for the top.
Stiller was spotted by Bayern scouts when playing for TSV Milbertshofen in north Munich and made the switch to the record champions at the age of nine in 2010.
He raced through the youth age groups at Säbener Strasse and was captaining the U17s to Bundesliga South/South-West glory in 2018 aged 16. Promoted to the U19s two years ahead of the curve, Stiller was almost ever-present for the side co-managed by Danny Schwarz and Martin Demichelis, contributing some four goals and eight assists in 35 appearances, as well as a goal and eight assists in 15 showings for Bayern's UEFA Youth League team.
A certain Sebastian Hoeneß then called Stiller into Bayern's reserve team squad before he made three substitute appearances for the Bayern first team in the DFB Cup and Champions League in 2020/21. It says a lot about how much Hoeneß values Stiller that he was recruited for Hoffenheim shortly after Hoeneß took the reins there, in 2021, and after 46 Bundesliga appearances in the following two seasons, the current Stuttgart boss snapped Stiller up again for his first full season in charge of the Swabians, 2023/24 - which turned out to be a phenomenal success!
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Plays a bit like: Joshua Kimmich
Stiller fits the modern mould of a deep-lying playmaker that Kimmich did so much to define while Stiller was developing in the Bayern youth ranks. Their stats for the 2023/24 seasons were remarkably similar, with Stiller getting one goal and five assists in Stuttgart's ascent to the top end of the Bundesliga, with Kimmich chalking up a goal and six assists. While some way off his level, Stiller can take it as a great compliment that he was given a spot in the first Germany squad after the retirement of the legendary Toni Kroos.
Did you know?
Transfer speculation can pose tricky questions for players, even more so when they are eight years old. A young Stiller initially turned down approaches from Bayern as he wanted to stay and play with his friends for his club in Milbertshofen in Munich's northern suburbs. Inevitably Bayern turned out to be too much of a prospect for the young talent to resist, but Stiller did not forget his pals in Milbertshofen, frequently attending the club's matches and gifting them a signed Bayern shirt in 2020.
What they're saying:
"I might be subjective, but Angelo has played really well again in recent months. It definitely won't be a mistake to select him." - Hoeneß on speculation Stiller was in contention for Germany's UEFA Euro 2024 squad.
"He is always able to adapt to a higher level. That's because he understands the game, and knows just how many contacts he needs in a particular situation - and that is rarely more than two, sometimes just one. He is able to dictate a game." - Hoeneß on Stiller's impact for Stuttgart in October 2023.
"He's already very mature. Stiller has a cool head and has adapted very quickly to the higher intensity in the third division." - Hoeneß after Stiller's impressive performances for Bayern II in 2019/20
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