When Niklas Süle announced his retirement, the football world reflected on his time at Bayern Munich—but the towering defender saved his most jaw-dropping revelation for the "Spielmacher" podcast. It turns out, Süle had been running a weekly scheme to outsmart the club's mandatory weigh-ins, and his method was nothing short of extreme.

"Jupp Heynckes was a tremendous mentor to me, but he also addressed the weight issue," Süle explained. "We had weigh-ins at Bayern every Thursday. So I didn't eat anything all Wednesday—I fasted the entire day. And every evening at home, I went to the sauna wearing a raincoat." The result? He'd shed two and a half kilos by morning. "After a day without food and sweating in a raincoat, I had to climb three flights of stairs to our bedroom. I opened the window, leaned out, and gasped for air for ten minutes because I thought I'd pass out."

Then came game day. "I'd play, we'd win, and Heynckes would say, 'See? You played much better now.' But the reality? My weight was exactly the same as before." Süle was essentially pulling a boxer's weight cut—minus the fight—every single week. By kickoff, he'd already regained the pounds he'd lost.

That strategy was wild, and definitely not advisable. But it highlights a career-long narrative: Süle's fitness was always under the microscope. At his peak, he was a defensive monster—a center-back who cleared everything in his path, strong enough to bully target men and fast enough to chase down pacy strikers. When shifted to right-back, he became perhaps the most physically imposing fullback the game has ever seen, combining raw power with surprising speed.

Yet, the weight question always lingered. Some players can perform at any size—maybe Süle was one of them. But one can't help wondering: what heights could he have reached with a more disciplined approach to fitness? For Bayern fans, it's a tantalizing "what if" about a defender who had all the tools to be an absolute legend.