Thomas Mueller made his Major League Soccer debut on Sunday as a second-half substitute for the Vancouver Whitecaps in a 1-1 draw with the Houston Dynamo. This left the German great with “mixed feelings” after a goal he scored was disallowed for offside. Vancouver led 1-0 thanks to Brian White’s sixth-minute penalty when Mueller, the former Bayern Munich striker, joined the match to a massive ovation in the 61st minute. Mueller, a World Cup winner with Germany who won 13 Bundesliga titles during his illustrious career at Bayern, arrived at Vancouver’s BC Place stadium amidst excited supporters, high-fiving and shaking hands along the way. The Whitecaps officially unveiled their new signing on Thursday, a week after he signed a deal extending through the end of the 2025 season with an option for 2026. The crowd of 26,301 stood and cheered when Mueller was introduced before kickoff, and he returned their applause. Minutes after entering the game, Mueller blasted a ball into the net, but it was ruled offside. “Mixed feelings, mixed feelings,” the 35-year-old said. “The result is disappointing, to be honest. But, yeah, I came in at my first moment directly with my first goal here. The crowd was going crazy, but then it was taken off for offside.” “We have to take the next steps in the next game,” he added after seeing Houston’s Artur score the equalizer with a long-range shot in the first minute of second-half injury time. “But I’m very happy to be here. I think the crowd was amazing.” The draw left Vancouver in third place in the Western Conference with 46 points, six behind conference leaders San Diego and one behind Minnesota. San Diego moved to the top of the Supporters’ Shield standings for the best overall record—ahead of Eastern Conference leaders Cincinnati on goal difference—with a come-from-behind 2-1 victory over the San Jose Earthquakes on Sunday. “We had to win it clear,” Mueller said. “We had to get big chances. But in the end, yeah, it’s soccer and it can happen.” He was pleased to have his first MLS match under his belt and looked forward to settling in after a whirlwind first week. “I’m happy now that my first game is in the books,” said the German, who joined Bayern’s youth program in 2000 and then called the club home for 25 years. “I can start next week, just a regular week.” “I just have to settle down today after this game in my apartment and think about what happened this week—it was crazy stuff.” With AP Inputs