Karim Bellarabi and Julian Brandt were third and fourth amongst the wingers with Kevin Volland in eighth spot. In the view of the Kicker editors Bellarabi was only outdone by Henrikh Mkhitaryan (BVB) and Franck Ribéry (Bayern). Julian Brandt is top in the next section with the following assessment: “When his name came up for inclusion there was a thorough discussion of his making the International class. With his goals and assists in the last ten games Julian Brandt showed his outstanding quality. Great on the ball, a good shot on the turn and brilliant technique – Brandt’s potential is indisputable.”
The assessment of Kevin Volland: “Three goals, seven assists and an average mark of 3.09. His run-in played a great part in keeping TSG Hoffenheim up after a catastrophic first half of the season.”
Amongst the strikers, Chicharito was listed in the International class for the second time in succession as was Borussia Dortmund forward Aubameyang. Bayern’s Robert Lewandowski was the only attacking player to make it to the ‘World class’ category. The Kicker assessment of ‘Chicha’: “On the verge of ‘World class’ in the first half of the season but he was unable to maintain his impressive number of goals and assists.” And on Stefan Kießling: “Once a striker, today a provider. The worker in Leverkusen rarely gets a chance to finish. Other players convert his handiwork into goals.”
Bayern Munich come to the BayArena this Saturday with an 11-point lead in the Bundesliga as they look to take a step closer to the title. As imperious as they may seem, a weakness has emerged of late that the Werkself proved they can exploit in Wednesday’s 1-1 draw with Arsenal in the Champions League. Leverkusen are also looking to make it four Bundesliga home games unbeaten against the Bavarians. Here’s all you need to know ahead of the 15:30 CET kick-off in our matchday news.
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Another home game, another top opponent - another marker? Three days after their convincing performance in the 1-1 draw with Arsenal in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg, Bayer 04 continue their Bundesliga campaign with an equally high-calibre fixture. Matchday 26 sees league leaders Bayern Munich visit the sold-out BayArena. Ahead of the clash, head coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke about a comparison between Arsenal and the Bavarians, Bayern's high-scoring performance in Europe's premier club competition and a return to the squad for one Werkself player.
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High spirits and previously untold stories: Around 100 Bayer 04 fans packed the Schwadbud fan pub in the east stand of the BayArena on Thursday evening to be there in person for the first instalment of the new series of events entitled “Rudi lädt ein” (Rudi invites you). They listened intently as long-serving Werkself players Gonzalo Castro and Stefan Kießling chatted with record appearance-maker Rüdiger Vollborn and presenter and stadium announcer Tobias Ufer about their many years together at the club, shared amusing anecdotes and revealed dressing room secrets. Anyone who missed the premiere can already look forward to the second instalment – on 12 May, Rudi will be testing the expert knowledge of Bayer 04 fans during a quiz night.
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The Bundesliga home game against VfL Wolfsburg in the first half of the season was one of those classic ‘days to forget’ for Bayer 04 Women. It started with goalkeeper Charlotte Voll being shown a red card in the first minute of the game, and following a further sending-off, coach Roberto Pätzold's 9-women side ended up losing 5-1 to last season's runners-up. At 18.30 CET on Sunday, they'll have the chance to exact revenge at the AOK Stadium - and pick up valuable points in the race for third place.
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They're well on their way to becoming German champions for the 35th time and once again proved their incredible class in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday. This Saturday, 14 March (kick-off: 15.30 CET), Bayern Munich will be the visitors to the BayArena. It'll be a meeting of the two Bundesliga teams with the most dominant styles of play. A look at our opponents shows the visitors from the Bavarian capital have many strengths - but are also vulnerable.
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