Maycon Cardozo's unique path

Maycon Cardozo couldn’t suppress his smile as he high-fived Luis Díaz on the touchline and entered the field in the 74th minute of the home match against Borussia Mönchengladbach. His number 49 lit up on the board. The 17-year-old had already caught the eye with good performances in training in recent weeks, and now Vincent Kompany rewarded the young talent with his first competitive minutes on the big stage. To applause from the home crowd, Cardozo took up his position on the left wing and was involved from his first touch of the ball.

He couldn’t stop smiling after the final whistle either. “When I came into the dressing room after the match, everyone congratulated me on my debut“, he said beaming into the microphone. “I’m very happy and proud of myself.” These words are not without reason. From Brazil via Thailand to training with the FC Bayern Munich first team and now his Bundesliga debut: the attacker’s path that led to this big moment sounds almost like a fairy tale. Just a few days ago, Cardozo signed a new long-term contract with the German record champions. A good reason to look back at his exciting career so far.

World Squad as springboard

Born in São Paulo, Cardozo spent the majority of his childhood in Thailand. It was there, where his father was also a professional player, where the native Brazilian took his first steps in football and progressed through several youth teams in the STB Sports Thai Bavaria Academy – which works closely with FC Bayern. His performances earned him a place in Bayern’s international U18 side, the Global Academy. Cardozo showed signs of promise again here, which led to a place in the associated U19 World Squad project. 

“He only came to us in the last four weeks of the 2024 World Squad on the recommendation of the Global Academy, because another player had been seriously injured,” his then coach and Bayern legend Roy Makaay told fcbayern.com. He was significantly younger than most of the others at 15, but his talent was already unmistakable back then. “Maycon played three games in the USA and two in Germany for the World Squad. That was enough for us to recommend him to the management at the Campus,” praised the Dutchman. After a trial with the U17s, he secured a contract at FC Bayern.

Setback and seamless comeback

However, this is when Cardozo’s remarkable rise temporarily came to a standstill. A shoulder injury sidelined the exuberant attacker, but after his recovery he seamlessly slotted back into his team. The transition to the U19s followed in the summer and he was also regularly invited to train with the first team by head coach Vincent Kompany towards the end of last year. Cardozo made his senior debut on 6 January, when he came on in the 89th minute of the friendly against Red Bull Salzburg (5-0). “He’s technically really well trained, skilful, nimble and fast as well as a dangerous finisher with both feet,” described Makaay.

Since the start of this year, he’s also been contributing these qualities to the FC Bayern second team. Not only has he been a permanent member of the reserve squad since the winter break, but also started in the opening two games of the year against SpVgg Unterhaching (1-0) and SpVgg Hankofen-Hailing (2-0), impressing on the left flank with creativity and assertiveness – in spite of his height of just 1.65 metres.

Makaay has also been following his former protégé’s progress: “You can clearly see how he’s developed in one year at Bayern – especially physically. The training is extremely demanding and it’s paying off. He needs to hold his own against adult players in this league, which will help him further.” With his contract extension, Cardozo is now continuing steadily on his unique path. The pacey winger is also working intensively on his German language skills and pursuing a clear objective: breaking into professional football. “Maycon has the will and the talent to establish himself at professional level. Where exactly his path will lead him remains to be seen,” said Makaay. Cardozo himself is already turning his attention to the weeks ahead: “We have to keep going and focus on the next games.” What started on Friday should only be the beginning.

One thing is already clear, though: this story is no fairy tale, but the result of talent, bravery and hard work.

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