Mikey Moore says his Mikey Moore move to 1. FC Köln felt like an easy step because of the path shown by Jadon Sancho and Jude Bellingham. The Tottenham loanee completed a season-long loan to Köln last month, and he says the Bundesliga looked like the right place to push his development.

The examples Moore had in mind

Speaking to BBC Sport, Moore pointed to the two English midfielders and attackers who have already used Germany as a launchpad. "I think over the years you've seen so many young players come out here, and there are some really good examples of world-class players like Jude Bellingham and Jadon Sancho doing really well," he said.

Moore added: "It's a really attractive place to play football, especially for a young attacker. It's a great platform to play, and that was sold to me by the people at the club and the manager."

The Sancho comparison is especially telling because Moore's move came almost a decade after a 17-year-old Sancho left Manchester City to join Borussia Dortmund. Sancho made more than 150 appearances for Dortmund and helped the club win the DFB-Pokal in 2021.

Moore also had an eye on Bellingham's route, with the former Birmingham City midfielder joining Dortmund in 2020 before his initial £88.5m move to Real Madrid in 2023.

Köln have trusted him quickly

The early signs at Köln have been encouraging. Moore said: "They've put real trust in me, and the amount of game time I've played so quickly in my Koln career has been nice. It's been good to have that trust from all the staff and people at the club."

That lines up with the minutes he has already banked. Moore has made 4 Bundesliga appearances and played 294 minutes, with a 6.51 rating that points to a solid start rather than a blaze of instant star quality.

His record at Tottenham helps explain why the loan makes sense. Moore managed only 2 Premier League appearances and 90 minutes for Spurs before heading to Germany, while last season's spell at Rangers brought 6 goals and 2 assists in 28 Scottish Premiership appearances.

Moore said the choice was deliberate, not accidental. "I had options to stay in England and maybe stay somewhere a little more comfortable," he said. "But the conversations came down to me picking a team, and I wanted to take myself a little bit out of my comfort zone to test myself in a big league and one of the top five leagues."

"For me, it was a no-brainer," he added. "I made the decision early that I wanted to come out here, and now I just need to push on."

Köln's next big reference point for Moore is a trip to face Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich next month, which will also reunite him with Harry Kane.

Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →