End of Season Review
The 2020/21 Bundesliga season was another full of drama and entertainment. The final league standings were anyone’s guess at the start of the campaign (perhaps except for top spot), and there were a number of teams who excelled well beyond their predicted finish, however at the same time a handful dropped below previous standards and reaped the consequences of this. This review will look back across the season from the perspective of each team, recounting top performances and best players, while also looking at what to expect when the league gets back up and running in August. Although, it is often hard to know what to expect in the Bundesliga.
Arminia Bielefeld
Final Position: 15th
Newly promoted Arminia Bielefeld came into the Bundesliga with most people expecting them to go straight back down. Despite winning the 2. Bundesliga in the 2019/20 campaign, they lacked a significant amount of top-flight experience compared to Stuttgart who came up with them in second place. Furthermore, the absence of fans seemed as if it would play a bigger role for Bielefeld than most – as the underdogs in nearly every game, a raucous crowd at the Schuco-Arena could have maybe given Arminia a necessary boost for home games, however with stadiums empty due to the Covid-19 pandemic, this was not going to be the case. Nevertheless, the squad was a typically German one packed full of tenacity and endeavour and, coming off the back of a season where they finished top of the table in the second tier, belief was high. Inspired by their captain and talisman Fabian Klos, Bielefeld fought hard this season more so than played a flowing game, but that set them up to stay up on the last day. Their survival was in their own hands as they travelled to, fittingly, Stuttgart needing a big performance and win to ensure safety and that is what they delivered coming away with a 2-0 victory. The three points meant that they would in Germany’s top tier again next season. They had beaten the drop against all the odds.
Player of the Season: Ritsu Doan
It appeared as if hard work and discipline had been enough for Arminia this season, but amongst the practical, defensive-minded group was one little Japanese winger who broke the trend. Ritsu Doan, on loan from Dutch side PSV for the duration of the campaign, added a spark that undoubtedly won them some points that otherwise would have gone begging. His technique and skill bamboozled defenders at times this season and he grabbed the vital second goal in the final day Stuttgart game to keep his team up as well. However, he looks set to go back to PSV for next campaign, either to play in the Eredivisie or be sold to one of the many interested clubs. Whatever the case, he will be sorely missed in Bielefeld.
Augsburg
Final Position: 13th
It was another season for Augsburg that finished with the target met – Bundesliga survival. Therefore, next season will mark an eleventh straight top-flight campaign after they reached the division for the first time back in 2011. However, the season did look as if it was taking a potentially decisive downwards slope towards the end. After a solid display up to the winter break, Augsburg sat comfortably in mid-table and it was not really even until March when the relegation battle became an issue. The combination of a pick-up from sides nearer the bottom of the league and a poor run of form meant that the Bavarians were slowly being pulled towards the drop-zone. Increased anxiety from the club’s hierarchy saw Heiko Herrlich get the chop, before ex-coach Markus Weinzierl was rehired for the sole purpose of seeing Augsburg over the line. In the end, they secured their Bundesliga status still with a game to play and avoided the scrap that others around them were involved in. It all means that they can go again next season, trying to stay up for the next season after that where they will try and stay up for the next season after that where they will try and stay up for the next season after that… Unless the Bundesliga serves up one of its surprises for Augsburg, maybe similar to when they managed a fifth place finish in the 2014/15 season which saw them get to play Liverpool in the following Europa League competition.
Player of the Season: Rafal Gikiewicz
Goalkeepers can sometimes go under the radar, with strikers getting the headlines scoring goals and fans adoring their centre-backs for the regular crunching tackles. However, since making the switch from Union Berlin last summer, with Andreas Luthe going the other way, Gikiewicz has been highly regarded by all associated with Augsburg. He is known for his reaction saves, vital to a bottom-half team who face a plethora of opposition chances each game and their Polish shot-stopper has kept them in more than a few contests over the course of the season.
Bayer Leverkusen
Final Position: 6th
Much like Augsburg, Bayer’s first half of the season was much better than the second. The race for the Champions League spots was a fierce one this campaign and the battle went down right to the final few games. Leverkusen were one of the teams in with a shout of grabbing a top four spot and around Christmas time were playing the sort of football that could have translated into the necessary points. However, in the latter stages of the season consistency became the issue for Bayer and it was impossible to know which side was going to turn up: the free-flowing attacking Leverkusen team that could bag any number of goals or the timid-looking outfit that seemed to lack belief in their ability. One major factor was the reliance on flair players like Moussa Diaby and Leon Bailey who, on their day, can run a team ragged with their pace and trickery and score goals as well as create them. But more often than not, these players find it hard to break down a well-organised defensive system and rarely find themselves in behind the opposing back line where they can really do damage. This is perhaps the difference between these promising attackers that Leverkusen have and the more regularly producing forwards that Bayern and Dortmund have like Gnabry and Reus who seem comfortable both in behind and facing up a rival defence. Bayer Leverkusen will just hope that, as well as restarting their push for the Champions League places next season, they can go deeper in Europe’s second tier competition, the Europa League, after disappointingly going out at the hands of Swiss side Young Boys in the round of 32 this year.
Player of the Season: Florian Wirtz
There were a number of decent performers this season for Leverkusen. Lucas Alario had a great start to the campaign and Leon Bailey ended up with good goal involvement stats as well. However, when the whole of Germany is talking about you at 18 years of age, that just about pips it. Florian Wirtz now holds the record for youngest player to score six Bundesliga goals and that is only one part of his game, adding to his creativity and lively runs forward. He certainly is in the mould of ex-Bayer superstar and now Champions League final goal scorer Kai Havertz, who got his big money move to Chelsea last summer. However, after a great campaign where he really established himself in the senior Leverkusen side, Wirtz has also had recent success of his own, starring as his Germany under-21 team lifted the European Championship for that age group.
Bayern München
Final Position: 1st
Bayern winning the league may seem a formality now to those who do not regularly watch the Bundesliga, after an eighth straight Bundesliga title, however this season was far from easy for the Rekordmeister. Despite being equipped with the best squad in the division, thanks to the financial means and attraction of playing for one of the biggest clubs in the world that other sides simply do not have, the Bavarians have found that their opponents are not so keen to just back down and slow starts were often pounced upon. In a year where every team had it tough, playing more games than usual and without the backing of fans in the stadiums, it is arguably the München side who had the fullest schedule. Extra competitions like the European Super Cup and the Club World Cup added more and more fixtures to the calendar, although also more and more trophies to the cabinet. However, even with the rotation of the starting players allowed by Bayern’s depth of squad, they often looked leggy and, at times, their play was slow and very un-Bayern. In the first game back after their exploits in the Club World Cup in Qatar, they found themselves 2-0 at half time at home to strugglers Arminia Bielefeld, undoubtedly a surprising score line brought on by the fatigue of a short turnaround and travelling a fair distance too. They do not normally find success approaching games like other big European teams like Barcelona and Real Madrid, using slower, more methodical, controlled possession to dominate the opposition. Rather, Bayern München are at their peak when going 100 miles an hour, utilising the pace and trickery of the likes of Gnabry, Sané and Coman to penetrate enemy lines and supply for Lewandowski up top. This campaign has been tough for these speedy players though, with performance levels hard to sustain and one of the main components of Bayern’s unbelievable 2019/20 season, and in fact Bundesliga Rookie of the Year for that campaign, Alphonso Davies has seen a significant drop-off.
Davies has found game-time harder to come by, having to fight with the more internationally experienced Lucas Hernandez for the left-back spot in the team and replicating his standard of the previous season was always going to be difficult for such a young player at just 20. His quality in 19/20 was epitomised by potentially the top assist of the Champions League competition for the fifth goal in Bayern’s 8-2 humiliation Catalan giants Barça, which was both his and his team’s best game of the campaign. This sort of level is unrealistic to uphold week in week out, but with the Bavarians’ sky-high ambition, they always judge themselves against their best so a slight decrease in form this year would have annoyed them more than anything. Arguably, this is what drove them over the finish line, coming from behind in the title race, only just topping the table going into the Winter Break. They managed to see off the challenge of RB Leipzig in the end, securing the title with two games to play after the Easterners lost to Dortmund to hand Bayern the Meisterschale. But then the Rekordmeister celebrated in the only way they know later that day, hammering Mönchengladbach 6-0. Finishing the campaign in first position is something of minimum success for Bayern, but the ecstasy felt through accomplishing the feat year after year does not diminish as seen evidently through the reactions of the players and staff when the title is clinched. However, that was not the only achievement in the Bayern camp this season, as a rather astounding individual made history…
Player of the Season: Robert Lewandowski
The pressure to follow in the footsteps of the greatest players to come before you is arguably the most intense for the current ones. However, at Bayern München expectation is even higher and so are the standards that have to be met. For the players who wear the red shirt today, their aim is to match what teams have achieved in years gone by, and in the past eighteen months or so they have certainly done that, perhaps even surpassing them to an extent. For individual players though, they will compare themselves against the top performers in previous Meisterschale winning sides, but for Robert Lewandowski, he has arguably the toughest act to follow. Perhaps Bayern’s greatest ever striker is Gerd Müller, scorer of almost 400 goals for the club and 68 in 62 games at international level for West Germany. He still holds the all-time Bundesliga scoring record after his goal-getting exploits in the 1960s and 1970s, but it was his single-season scoring feat in 1971/72 that Lewandowski had his eye on this campaign – an almost ridiculous tally of 40 Bundesliga strikes in just 34 matches. Breaking the record would require an unbelievable level of consistency, but also a whole host of multiple-goal games. The more hattricks the better, however the Polish front man is certainly not unfamiliar with those. Lewandowski started the campaign on the right track, averaging the necessary more than a goal a game as the season reached the half-way point. The Winter Break did little to slow the Pole down as well, and his scoring efforts only continued. The goals flowed for Lewandowski, and breaking the record seemed ever more likely as the Bundesliga neared its conclusion with just a handful left that he needed to find. However, an injury picked up on international duty put his record hunt in jeopardy, as it cost him the next four weeks of action and meant that Lewandowski only ended the season having played 29 of the 34 games. When trying to reach the already tricky 40-goal milestone, every round of fixtures is greatly needed, so this could have been a major setback for the forward. But Lewandowski is not just any striker, and after his return to action he jumped straight back on the goal-scoring train and, with a game to go, equalled Müller’s record at the Schwarzwaldstadion away to Freiburg with perhaps the coolest penalty ever taken. That set up the opportunity to go one better and find the net for an historic 41st time in a single, solitary season. His opponents: fellow Bavarians Augsburg. Already safe, they had nothing but pride to play for, but even then, they surely would not dare stop the Pole from doing what everyone wanted him to do. Lewandowski’s teammates tried to help him out, setting him up at every chance, but it appeared for the majority of the game that the striker was having perhaps the most ill-timed of off-days, missing shots he surely would have put away if not under the most pressure he has ever faced. Other players around him did not experience the same difficulty, on both sides, as the game entered the final minute of the ninety at 4-2 to Bayern. However, when Leroy Sané tried his luck to add a fifth strike for the hosts, all that keeper Gikiewicz could do was palm the ball straight into the path of his compatriot, the waiting Lewandowski, who rounded his opponent before slotting home the monumental strike. One-and-forty that made it to seal what was maybe the greatest season for an individual player in the history of German football.
Borussia Dortmund
Final Position: 3rd
It was a hard season to watch at times for Dortmund fans. Title ambitions had gone out of the window before the winter break after a frankly abysmal first half of the campaign. Coach Lucien Favre was shown the exit after possibly Borussia’s worst game of the season at home to Stuttgart in December. The hosts were second-best throughout the contest and fell to an embarrassing 5-1 thrashing at the hands of the newly promoted side and that turned out to be the last nail in the coffin for Favre. The Swiss manager left in came his assistant coach Edin Terzic as interim for the rest of the campaign. He had a tough job on his hands, especially with sorting out Dortmund’s leaky rear guard – Zagadou had been injured all season and losing Axel Witsel early in the campaign was a major hit as well, as he is usually the one to just patrol the midfield, breaking down opposing attacks at source. However, going the other way, even the front line seemed to be missing that extra something. When Terzic took over, Jadon Sancho was unbelievably still yet to find his first league goal and players like Brandt and Hazard were just having a really tough time of it. After switching in an out of a back three and back four all season up to that point, the new boss moved to a more consistent system, playing with a more traditional four at the back much more often. It suited the experienced Mats Hummels, whose pace had come into question in a three, and he was allowed to focus more on being a leader at the back with the full back cover on either side of the centre-halves. Furthermore, the wing-back system had been at its best for Dortmund when Achraf Hakimi was racing down the right-hand side, but since his loan from Real Madrid ended and subsequent transfer to Internazionale, Borussia had to refocus their creative pathways. The change in formation not only improved the defensive structure, if not sorting it out completely, but the attack really started to flourish as well. Sancho and Haaland began firing on a regular basis and Dortmund games soon became the ones to watch, as each contest was simply a case of which team could outscore their opponent. Their superior firepower meant that things got back on track and the pressure they applied on Wolfsburg and Eintracht above them in the top four spots meant that both began to falter, but the latter especially. Dortmund’s return fixture against Stuttgart was a chance for a real signal of intent and a thrilling match which ended 3-2 to the Gelbschwarzen let everybody know that Dortmund were coming for the Champions League places. Frankfurt fell away and Borussia took full advantage, even managing to leapfrog Wolfsburg too right at the last. A third place finish is far from bad, but with Sancho and Haaland both sure to be at the top of the shopping lists of the world’s biggest clubs, new boss for next season, Marco Rose, is going to have to do a lot of thinking over the summer if he wants to get Dortmund back fighting for the Meisterschale.
Player of the Season: Erling Haaland
At the end of his first full season in a black and yellow shirt, Haaland can look at his tally of 27 league goals and say: “job well done.” Still not 21 until July, Haaland has caused the downfall of many Bundesliga defences over the past 18 months since his switch to German football from RB Salzburg. Dortmund snapped him up after he netted 17 goals in just 16 games for the Austrian champions for what now seems like a bargain at under £20m, his market value now standing at six times this figure. His drive to score goals is admirable for a player as young as him and the number of runs he makes means the jobs of the midfielders paid to supply him are a lot easier. Sancho certainly loves playing alongside the big Norwegian. No big European club would dare break up that relationship, would they?
Borussia Mönchengladbach
Final Position: 8th
Even after doing their bit on the final day winning away to Bremen, Gladbach still had not quite done enough to reach the European places this season after what was a reasonably disappointing 2020/21. Ending the campaign knowing that will not play continental football in midweek next year may have come as a shock to the Borussia fans, after clinching fourth spot and entry into the Champions League only twelve months prior. However, the drop-off in from this time round from some of the usually more reliable players like Pléa and Thuram has meant that goals did not flow like they used to, even if the side looked almost exactly the same as it did before. One pleasing takeaway from the season though will be the continued solid displays from young Florian Neuhaus, whose stock is ever rising. 6 goals and 5 assists for a central midfielder playing in a mid-table side is far from bad, and at just 24 there is plenty of time for Neuhaus’ numbers and the performances to go with them to improve. He is sure to grace the Bundesliga stage for many years to come and even if it he does not do it in a Mönchengladbach shirt, the likes of Bayern will have fork out a hefty fee to take him away from Borussia-Park.
Player of the Season: Lars Stindl
Every team needs a good captain and in veteran attacker Lars Stindl, Gladbach certainly have that. Even at the age of 32, he is one of the Foals most consistent players, scoring goals and setting them up for teammates on a regular basis. He also boasts a good record from twelve yards, something essential to any side as well and his talismanic attitude and desire to perform inspires players around him to do the same. No surprise that when he plays well, the team seems to do the same and getting the best out of Stindl often means getting the best out of the younger forwards like Marcus Thuram who feel more at home in a side with their captain leading the line.
Eintracht Frankfurt
Final Position: 5th
If Frankfurt had been offered fifth place and an automatic route into the Europa League at the start of the season, they would have jumped at it. In truth, they may have been slightly disappointed to not get into the Champions League after being in the top four for the majority of the season and only dropping off towards the end. However, even the slightest opportunity was enough for Dortmund to nip in and take full advantage, stealing the place among Europe’s elite instead. Nevertheless, after finishing four spots and 18 points below Leverkusen who claimed fifth in the 19/20 Bundesliga campaign, Eintracht have seen a significant improvement this time around, mirroring their brilliant season they enjoyed with the formidable trio of Sebastian Haller, Ante Rebic and Luka Jovic up front two years ago. Since going their separate ways, the three strikers have had a varied degree of success, but Jovic in particular has struggled to settle in Spain with giants Real Madrid. Therefore, a loan move was arranged for him in January to re-join the Eagles until the end of the season and three goals in his first two games gave the impression that he had never really left. However, his form did not and did not need to continue after that, with other players around him experiencing the best season of their careers: Kostic supplying assist after assist, Kamada lively in every game and Amin Younes loving life back in his native Germany after a spell playing in Italy. However, it was Jovic’s strike partner who really stole the headlines for Frankfurt this year.
Player of the Season: André Silva
Eintracht’s top player of 2020/21 might be the easiest to call out of any Bundesliga team. Throughout the whole campaign, their Portuguese marksman André Silva has been bagging goals relentlessly and a final tally of 28 in the league alone earned him the single season scoring record for the club. He certainly was not short on service and a constant supply line of chances was a major factor in his individual success, but he showcased over the course of the last nine months that he is very adept in all areas of centre forward play. He is quick across the ground and always ready for chances to come his way, but it is in the air where he has really shone, despite not being a classic giant number nine. However, his positioning in the 18-yard box means that he is difficult to pick up and defenders throughout the league have found it just as hard to stop him from winning headers and scoring big goals for his side.
Freiburg
Final Position: 10th
Freiburg coach Christian Streich is a passionate and often animated manager, but, with regard to his team’s limited transfer budget, it is clear to see that he is also a very tactically adept one too. Despite not being handed the most technically capable side, although quality is interspersed throughout, the Black Foresters have the ability to go toe to toe with anyone on their day and a late season draw against Bayern exemplified this. They showed consistency throughout much of the campaign and even looked as if they might manage a push for Europe towards the end of the season. Still on the last day they had mathematical chance of claiming seventh spot and entry into the inaugural UEFA Conference League, but that would have taken a number of results going their way and ultimately the odds were just too heavily stacked against them. However, that does not take anything away from what was a very safe mid-table finish and relegation never seemed an issue all season for Freiburg which must have pleased Streich greatly. In the end, on points, they were closer to the Europa League spots than they were to the drop zone and that is despite playing a very entertaining style of football at a fast pace. Few may be able to master it, but Freiburg’s tenacity and rotation allowed by a squad full of desire means they approach each game prepared to just go for it.
Player of the Season: Christian Günter
Watching captain Günter racing up and down the left flank all game is the clearest example of the Freiburg philosophy, and he is arguably equally capable in both defence and attack – a very useful attribute of a modern day full-back. The skipper has undoubtedly enjoyed his best season, featuring in all 34 Bundesliga games and providing three assists for teammates as well as getting three goals himself. Setting up others has always been part of Günter’s game, but the addition of goals this season has meant that more and more have started to take notice of him. His first Bundesliga brace against Schalke was potentially his best game of the season, but his greatest achievement came due to his fine campaign as a whole, as Günter has been called up for the German national team’s squad for the delayed 2020 European Championships. A deserved recognition of his quality from Germany boss Joachim Löw.
Hertha Berlin
Final Position: 14th
When the final whistle blew for Hertha’s penultimate game of the season, a 0-0 home draw to Köln, the Berlin fans would have let out a collective sigh of relief. That was close! For a team with the financial backing of the capital side, an apparent half a billion euros over the last few years on the club altogether, the threat of relegation was far too real. However, when they needed results at the back end of the campaign, the players did pull through and deliver the required points. A Covid-19 outbreak in the Hertha camp back in March meant that a number of matches had to be postponed and the team slipped to second bottom. But they rallied together and used their bunch of games in hand to move clear of the drop zone. Undoubtedly, a lot of work needs to still be done, both in terms of the team of players and the club as a whole if Berlin are to start pushing for the places in the table that they are aiming for. The transfer policy has seemed in recent years to be that taking players from teams in European competition would translate to European football of their own, but it does not work always work out that way. Hertha’s city rivals Union are a prime example that sometimes a side, usually with a majority of German players, who do the basics perfectly can win enough games to get the points to finish high up the table. Simple. Hertha seem to always be looking to the future, but this season it was their present that nearly crumbled before their eyes.
Player of the Season: Petar Pekarik
The inconsistency of the Hertha forwards makes it hard to pick one of them as the team’s best player for the campaign. The four main attackers, Cunha, Piatek, Lukebakio and Cordoba, are all regularly rotated to try and keep them fresh and also because no one of them seems able to sustain a long enough period of good form. They all ended up with either seven or eight goals for the season, which does not appear too bad if a number of players are managing those tallies, but the more successful teams all boast strikers with numbers in the double figures and that is the major difference. One player, however, who did surpass even probably his own wildest expectations for goalscoring this year was veteran right-back Petar Pekarik. The Slovakian is pretty much part of the furniture at Hertha now, after nine years at the club, but had only previously managed a solitary goal before this season. However, a total of three Bundesliga goals in 2020/21 has established the 34-year-old as one of the capital side’s most predominant goal threats, after finishing an impressive fifth on the club’s top scorers list.
Hoffenheim
Final Position: 11th
A team with big spirit from a small German village. However, this team already punching well above its weight even playing in the top-flight has established itself as a consistent Bundesliga outfit. After almost miraculously qualifying for the Champions League under emerging young coach Julian Nagelsmann back in the 2017/18 season and then for the Europa League, finishing sixth in the previous campaign, an eleventh placed end to the current season may have felt like something of an anti-climax for the Hoffenheim fans. However, that is only a testament to the meteoric rise of the football club and their mid-table position just shows that there is a strong foundation already, allowing for the side to build and really push for a more regular top six placing each season without a major threat of the drop. Some more pessimistic supporters may have had minor concerns over being pulled into the relegation scrap, but in the end a reasonable level of European experience throughout the squad meant that there was enough quality for Hoffenheim to finish the season comfortably.
Player of the Season: Andrej Kramaric
Hoffenheim’s starting line-up looks far from weak these days, but one especially potent aspect of their side comes in the shape of Croatian attacker Andrej Kramaric. The former Leicester man was only used as a bit-player in his time in England, and often had to operate on the wing when he did get his chance in the Foxes’ side. However, since coming to Germany, he has flourished in a central role and been something of a talisman for his current team. His ability to snatch goals out of nothing and nearly faultless record from the penalty spot means that even when his teammates are not on top form, he is still capable of producing the goods and winning Hoffenheim points that otherwise may go amiss. He started the season brilliantly, keeping pace with the mighty Lewandowski for the first few matchdays until injury hit Kramaric’s season. His time on the side lines was perhaps the reason that Hoffenheim did not finish higher up the table, however it did not hold him back in a scoring sense when he did get to play. His return to action in the second half of the campaign brought with it a flurry of goals and he ended the 2020/21 Bundesliga with a tally of 20 goals – joint-fourth in the league and a new Hoffenheim record in the top division. One only wonders what he could have achieved if he had played the entire season.
Köln
Final Position: 16th
For fans of the Billy Goats, the 2020/21 Bundesliga season was far from boring, however a mid-table placement would have been much more welcome after some inconsistent recent years for the club. There might have been a hope that Köln were gradually pulling away from the threat of going down to the 2. Bundesliga, after Markus Gisdol got them promoted from the second tier in 2018/19 and then guided them to a 14th place finish in their first season back in the top flight. Hence, top half may have been the best case scenario for this campaign, however it did not turn out that way, and poor performances throughout the course of the nine months saw Köln slip into the drop zone and Gisdol slip out of a job as the season neared its end. Former Fortuna Düsseldorf boss Heiko Herrlich was hired to try and pull off a last ditch escape and, except for a 3-0 loss in his first match, restored some form to the side. That set up the chance for survival on the last day, but with the Westerners sitting second bottom, they had to win and also hope that other results went their way. The team that started the day in the relegation play-off spot was Werder Bremen, but after they fell to defeat at the hands of Gladbach, Köln had the chance to leapfrog them into 16th. They snatched the opportunity with under ten minutes to play, as a Sebastiaan Bornauw header dragged them out of the drop zone, however with Arminia winning, they would have to entertain a dreaded play-off game against second division side Holsten Kiel to secure their Bundesliga status. Werder were down, but Köln showed that they had no intention of joining them, or at least in the second leg away in Kiel after falling to a 1-0 defeat at home, however that only sparked them to use all of their top flight experience an quality to coast to a comfortable 5-2 aggregate victory, ensuring that they will be one of the teams that gets to do it all over again when the Bundesliga returns in August.
Player of the Season: Jonas Hector
After a season where new signings like Sebastian Andersson failed to deliver in their first campaign wearing a red and white Köln shirt, it took the team’s captain to step up at the crucial moments to haul his side towards the safety line. Jonas Hector was injured for a significant part of the season, but his team’s drop in form during this period only exemplified his value to the side. However, it was arguably his goals, rather than his usual leadership and composure that he brings to each game, that really told in the latter stages of the campaign. In new boss Herrlich’s second match in charge against high-flyers Leipzig, Hector was utilised in a very different role to his normal left-back position where he has found so much success over the years and has previously featured for the German national team. Instead, he was deployed in a false nine birth to try and add some much needed experience to an underperforming front line, but what nobody expected was that he would come up with a first Bundesliga brace to hand his side a shock 2-1 win. Then, in the vital second leg of the relegation play-off, he scored another massive goal inside three minutes to set Köln on their way to both the victory away to Kiel and thus Bundesliga survival.
Mainz
Final Position: 12th
They say football is a game of two halves, however that usually refers to the two 45 minute periods in a single match. For Mainz, however, this statement could be perfectly applied to the two halves of their season, which were a stark contrast. As the campaign neared its mid-way mark, with 14 rounds of fixtures played, Mainz had still just six points on the board. The last of those games came at the Allianz Arena against Bayern and, although most teams can be excused for a loss away to the record champions, Mainz relinquished a 2-0 lead they had at half time, eventually falling to a 5-2 thrashing. That was the last straw for the club hierarchy, who believed it was time for a change in manager and the man brought in to take over was Danish coach Bo Svensson, who had over a hundred games for the club at the end of his playing career. At the age of 41, Svensson is a relatively young manager, but his inexperience did not stop him from pulling off perhaps the greatest turnaround that the German top flight has seen in recent years. In his twenty matches at the helm, Svensson’s Mainz won 33 points, meaning that the club’s points per game ratio before his introduction compared with after was 0.43 to 1.65. If Mainz had this ratio all campaign then they would be preparing for Europa League football next season, after finishing above Leverkusen in sixth spot. A quite miraculous change. Svensson dragged them out of second bottom place and up the table, finally peaking at 12th, but if the season had not stopped then it seemed as if Mainz would have just kept on climbing. They are, without doubt, the top Bundesliga team of 2021 so far.
Player of the Season: Jean-Paul Boetius
Obviously the coach does not do everything, as the players on the pitch have to have the right skill and attitude to put their plan into practice, but Svensson’s focus on rotation especially in attack meant that players stayed sharp and a high tempo style of football could be played. However, one man who particularly flourished was Jean-Paul Boetius, a nifty Dutch midfielder who really enjoyed being given a bit more freedom to roam under the new more attack-orientated system. Admittedly, like many of the current Mainz squad, he lacks some quality when in front of goal, but he did manage to find the net on two occasions this season as well as providing four assists for teammates. However, it was his fast-paced play that really impressed along with his ability to make frequent runs behind enemy lines. If anything, he simply distracted opposing defences with his tricky movement and freed up space for others to chip in with the important goals.
RB Leipzig
Final Position: 2nd
After only being founded in 2009, it seems pretty ridiculous that RB Leipzig could be a consistent top four finisher, however that is certainly what they have become since their arrival to the Bundesliga. There were question marks over how they would fare at the beginning of the season without their main goal threat from previous campaigns, Timo Werner. The German forward had gone for a sizeable transfer fee to play in for Chelsea in the Premier League, and it was thought that his pace and good runs on the break would be sorely missed by Leipzig. However, to deal with the loss of their striker, the side from the East reverted to a new style of play, often fielding either a more classic number nine like Yussuf Poulsen or Alexander Sørloth, or by starting a match without a recognised front man. On these occasions, the job of leading the line fell to one of the players usually deployed as a winger or in a more creative role, and this was done in the hope that they could, at least to some extent, replicate the counterattacking abilities that Werner possessed. Therefore, in big games where Leipzig may have less possession, Kluivert and Nkunku found themselves in a rather unfamiliar role up top. Although, this did not especially mean that these new strikers replaced the goals that Werner brought to the side, however they did still play an important role in the system of pressing and when linking up the play. Rather, the target was more often found by midfield players – Forsberg and Sabitzer both on eight league goals by the end of the campaign as well as chipping in with their customary handful of assists. What was perhaps most impressive about Leipzig’s season was that they did not seem to really ever hit top form, but still managed to be the only challenger to Bayern in the title race. However, a worry for the club will be more impending departures. As coach Julian Nagelsmann and top defender Dayot Upamecano prepare to join Bayern München for the start of next season, concerns will once again be raised over the impact that big gaps in the team will have, left by members of the club going in search of greater ambitions.
Player of the Season: Angeliño
There have been a number of top players in the Bundesliga this campaign who have suffered an injury early in the season, but then returned to action and hit top form. On the other hand, RB Leipzig’s flying wing-back Angeliño began the season in great stead, and seven goals and seven assists was good enough to make his club decide to change his loan from Manchester City into a permanent deal. Therefore, January saw him tied down to the team long term, but he also sustained an injury mid-way through the campaign that Leipzig would not have been so excited about. Unfortunately both for them and Angeliño individually, his fantastic season was over prematurely and when considering his blistering form beforehand, who knows how much more of a title push RB Leipzig could have made if the rapid Spaniard had been a fixture in the side for the crucial months.
Schalke
Final Position: 18th
It has been a dismal year for all associated with this historic German club. Although it will be of no consolation whatsoever to the Royal Blues’ fans, they serve as a prime example of why the Bundesliga is so entertaining – from a 2nd place finish in 2017/18, they have plummeted to one of the worst campaigns the league has ever witnessed just three seasons later, highlighting the unpredictability of the German game and just reiterating the fact that no-one is assured of anything football. However, Schalke’s squad is evidently not what it used to be after financial struggles have meant more attention has needed to be paid to the selling of players rather than recruitment. Hence, much focus was put on the progression of youth players this campaign and trying to build the next generation of Schalke stars, but it was very difficult for these youngsters to perform to the standards that the club usually sets with so much pressure on their inexperienced shoulders. Furthermore, they were often thrown into the team all together, and could really have benefitted from some older players who were used to the system that Schalke were using. However, this was not the case and any more experienced players either came in as free transfers in January, such as Kolasinac and Mustafi, and therefore had little time to settle in, or simply could not advise the younger ones around them since the plethora of coaches that came and went for the team over the course of the campaign meant there was no consistency in the way that Schalke were setting the side up. Confidence was obviously lost with all the changes and it did not seem like a way to stop the rot was coming any time soon. Schalke struggled in all departments really all season. Simple aspects of the game like passing the ball and making runs just did not happen and scoring goals was almost impossible for this reason, however even more difficulty was found when trying to prevent them from going in at the other end. The trend for the season was arguably set in their very first encounter, an 8-0 loss to Bayern. Not too many would have had alarm bells ringing after a defeat at the hands of the champions on opening day, but conceding eight still did not bode well, even if Barcelona had not been able to do any better just months earlier in the Champions League. The leakiness of the back line did not change over the course of the campaign though, but Schalke were at their most vulnerable when having to defend set pieces especially. They conceded just under a goal every game from a set piece situation, with corner kicks the most threatening to them in particular. That put them at a major disadvantage going into each game and accentuated to their opponent more than anything that dead balls were where they could probably profit most. That and several other issues need to be addressed in the summer months as the club tries to rebuild in the hope that they can go straight back up to the Bundesliga next season, however their performances over the last year or so would not pass in any league. If they are not careful and do not focus on forming a good foundation now, Schalke’s downward spiral is only going to continue.
Player of the Season: Matthew Hoppe
Not a lot of Schalke players have shone this season, however one of the new young players introduced to the side did show glimpses of quality in the second half of the season. When Schalke were on their worst run, winless in 30 Bundesliga matches and in serious jeopardy of equalling the record of 31 games without a victory set by Tasmania Berlin in the 1965/66 season, they required someone to step up and produce something out of the blue against Hoffenheim in January so that they would not go down in history for all the wrong reasons. Thrust into the starting line-up for his first ever Bundesliga game from the off, 19-year-old Matthew Hoppe from southern California came up with perhaps the most surprising performance of the entire campaign to bring at least a little bit of joy to the long-suffering Schalke fans. He scored a remarkable hattrick to stun the visitors as the Royal Blues coasted to a 4-0 home win and at that point of the season, just a few games after the Winter Break, it gave the team hope that there was maybe still time to pull off the great escape if performances remained in that vein. Hoppe grabbed another two goals in the following couple of games to make it a very respectable five in three for the young American. That alone could have probably won him the title of player of the season, but he did continue to look the brightest man on the field for Schalke in subsequent fixtures and the club may find it hard to ward off potential suitors searching for a promising young striker. Hoppe may feel that the prospect of second tier football next season is one that he is too good for.
Stuttgart
Final Position: 9th
After finishing in second place in the 2019/20 2. Bundesliga season Stuttgart prepared themselves for the exhilarating prospect of a return to the top flight. They were going up with Arminia Bielefeld and hence comparisons were going to be drawn all campaign between the two teams, however Stuttgart never looked like they would struggle as much as their fellow newly promoted club did. While Bielefeld battled in and around the drop zone, the team from the Mercedes-Benz Arena had their sights set on greater things. Coach Pellegrino Matarazzo had engineered the side into one that looked threatening going forward no matter the opposition, able to work both on the counter using the pace of Silas or Tanguy Coulibaly and when up against a deeper and more rigid back line by utilising both the crossing ability of top assist maker Borna Sosa and the pure physical stature of Austrian striker Sasa Kalajdzic, standing at a gargantuan six foot seven inches. This attacking intent was the root of Stuttgart’s very respectable goal-scoring return for a promoted team, but with the desire to go forward, they needed a handful of top defensive players to deal with any attempts to break from their opponents. Wataru Endo epitomised the side’s endeavour, ready to make any crunching tackles when necessary but his intelligence to just sweep up any forward passes is what really must have impressed the coaching staff. He also appeared to have found a knack of goal scoring later in the season coming up with a couple of great strikes – a new addition to his game individually. He, like the whole Stuttgart squad, have come along in leaps and bounds this campaign and although they do still play the same entertaining football that earned them an impressive promotion straight back up to the Bundesliga a year ago, the improved accuracy of passing and speed of play as well as greater experience holds them in good stead for next time around. They did fall just short of a European spot in their first season back, understandably so, but 2021/22 might see Stuttgart make a real top seven bid.
Player of the Season: Silas
Stuttgart have arguably boasted two of the top forwards this season in Kalajdzic and Silas and while the lofty Austrian managed more goals than his fellow attacker, 16 to 11, the man from the Democratic Republic of the Congo has proved to be one of the league’s most exciting young players. His strength and pace have left defenders in fear all campaign, and combined with his sharp finishing, he is capable of playing both through the centre and in a wider birth. Others around him also seem to perform better when he is on form, as Dortmund found out back in December at the Signal Iduna Park. Gio Reyna put the home side ahead, but Silas hit back with a brace to turn the game on its head. This was just the catalyst for the Stuttgart display, and they ran riot ending the game as 5-1 victors. Similar devastating play has seen Silas awarded with the Bundesliga Rookie of the Season title for 2020/21, but his actual age, among other things, has come under scrutiny in recent weeks. It was revealed that the player formerly known as Silas Wamangituka has been using a false name and age due to a fake passport. His real name is actually Silas Katompa Mvumpa and is really 22 years of age rather than 21 as previously thought. Stuttgart released a club statement which said that Silas himself was at no fault for this, and the false documentation was a result of a former agent of the Congolese forward’s who told him when playing for French side Paris FC, before joining Stuttgart, that he would be sent back to his native country if he used his birth name. Therefore, Wamangituka, one of Silas’ father’s names, was chosen. All very confusing. The player has been cleared of any responsibility, as he is the victim in the case, and he has said himself that from now on he simply wants to be known by his first name, Silas.
Union Berlin
Final Position: 7th
In stark contrast to their capital city rivals, what a season for Union! The club held together by its fans in more ways than one, as they actually built their current stadium, have achieved the incredible feat of reaching European competition in only their second ever Bundesliga campaign. Berlin are certainly a side who know how to fight and players like Robert Andrich ensure that the midfield battle is always a feisty one, but what Union have shown flashes of that they did not in their premier year in the big time was some real true quality. The signing of Max Kruse on a free transfer after he terminated his contract with Turkish side Fenerbahce was an inspired one. With years of Bundesliga football in the bag and the claim to being a former Germany international, he brought both a decisive touch of class to proceedings as well as bundles of priceless experience. Furthermore, his record from the penalty spot is almost flawless and he equalled the record for most consecutive successful spot kicks this campaign. However, at times when he was out injured this season, others stepped up in an attacking sense. On-loan Liverpool striker Taiwo Awoniyi had a particularly good spell at one point and the Nigerian definitely added an impetus to the Union attack with his non-stop running and considerable size and strength. A tally of five goals and two assists was appreciated too. Union clinched seventh place in dramatic fashion on the final day, coming from behind at home to RB Leipzig and only grabbing their winner in injury time to put them above Gladbach in the table, and they did it all in front of fans for the first time this season. Their league position means that they will be one of the first clubs to take part in the inaugural UEFA Europa Conference League, the third tier of European club competition. Their ability to scrap for results will more than come in handy, but also the constant supply line from their right-back and captain Christopher Trimmel should help to provide the much-needed chances in continental football. Having never been in a situation before like that in which they will find themselves in the Conference League next season, they may be expected to fold under the pressure by their opponents. However, Union take any challenge head on and successful fixtures like the relegation/promotion play-off win over Stuttgart in the 2018/19 season which got them to the Bundesliga show that they can topple teams with seemingly more quality. Tottenham Hotspur watch out; the Berlin boys are coming!
Player of the Season: Marvin Friedrich
There were several Union with impressive numbers this season: for Kruse, a striker, eleven goals is very good and nine assists for creative wing-back Trimmel just the same. However, when tough-tackling, tenacious centre-half Marvin Friedrich comes up with two assists and a league-high five goals for a defender it stands out. He has been very consistent in his day job at the back for Union, playing all 34 Bundesliga games, but his aerial threat when going forward for set pieces has been surely noted by opposition clubs, not that they have been able to do anything about stopping him from reaching the ball first and usually steering it home. He played a major role in the crucial final game of the campaign, as he latched onto a the end of a Trimmel cross to grab the equalizer against Leipzig, setting up the chance to go and get the vital winner to put the side into Europe.
Werder Bremen
Final Position: 17th
Another historic German club joins Schalke in the 2. Bundesliga next season after a disappointing 2020/21. Bremen did not start the campaign too badly though, and a number of draws, including one away to champions Bayern München, would have not raised any major concerns over relegation at that point. Their highlight of the season was a 4-1 win when visiting Hertha Berlin at the Olympiastadion – a typical counterattacking performance with only 34% possession. Furthermore, a valiant run in the DFB-Pokal saw Werder get all the way to the semi-final stage, only to be knocked out by RB Leipzig. Although, in truth, their path to the final four had not been the toughest, facing mainly second tier teams. However, in league terms, ultimately not enough of the draws were turned into victories and the team sat in the bottom half of the table going to the latter stages of the campaign, unable to emulate their cup displays. It did not appear that Werder would have been in too much trouble if they had been able to muster some kind of late-season form, because the likes of Arminia, Köln, Hertha and Augsburg were all below them in the standings. Hoffenheim had the same predicament with ten games left to play, with both teams on 30 points, but 13 more before the end of the season saw Hoffenheim safely retain their top-flight status. This was in stark contrast to Bremen. Unfortunately for them, the start of a very poor run saw them lose all confidence and even their manager of nearly four years, Florian Kohfeldt. He had been backed through hard times before, including the previous campaign’s nail-biting relegation play-off win on away goals against Heidenheim, but to try and resolve a shocking end to the season and hopefully keep Werder up, Kohfeldt was given the chop. Not that replacement coach Markus Anfang was able to do any better and the trend continued until their fate was sealed with a 4-2 defeat at home to Mönchengladbach. With just a single, solitary point from their last 30 available, Werder Bremen were condemned to 2. Bundesliga football in 2021/22. The only consolation and glimmer of hope for a swift return to the top tier will be that their recent record against second division sides is very good: seeing off Heidenheim over two legs in the last fixture of the previous campaign, and knocking out Hannover, Fürth and Regensburg in the cup this time around. Perhaps we will see the men in green back where they belong before long.
Player of the Season: Marco Friedl
No one Werder player stood out from a bad bunch. For even bottom side Schalke, Matthew Hoppe emerged as an exciting young talent and Amine Harit, when fit, showed flashes of his quality – neither can hold great blame for the club’s relegation. However, for Werder Bremen their season was very much a team effort, but just for all the wrong reasons. The attack was consistently lacklustre with too much responsibility paced on the youthful shoulders of American striker Josh Sargent, however, although not much superior, the defence did at times manage to stem the opposition’s offensive flow. 23-year-old left-back Marco Friedl was perhaps the most regular player, involved in 32 of the 34 Bundesliga games and never seemed too far out of his depth in the top flight despite his inexperience. His season was good enough at least to earn him a call-up to the Austrian squad for the European Championships, and Bremen will hope that some international experience and confidence brought about by a good tournament will provide the basis for Friedl to become one of the top defenders in the second tier next season.
Wolfsburg
Final Position: 4th
Last but certainly not least (it is just because they come last alphabetically) is Wolfsburg. After achieving a fourth place finish, the Wolves will enjoy their first taste of Champions League football since the 2015/16 season. In that time, they have been very unpredictable in their league positioning, surviving back-to-back relegation play-offs in 16/17 and 17/18, but then jumping up ten places to sixth the next season, earning them automatic Europa League qualification. They then managed seventh the year after but failed in the play-off round for Europe’s second tier competition, losing out to Greek side AEK Athens. A real mixed bag of fortunes, however after a much more consistent campaign this time around, maybe Wolfsburg will manage to solidify themselves as a regular top six or even top four side if they can retain this season’s successful style of play. It seemed as if everyone in the Wolfsburg squad was involved over the course of the last nine months, showing a real depth. Whoever had to fulfil the role they were tasked with did it to a tee, and that is shown by the number of different goal scorers and assist providers they had. However, their most impressive area on the field is arguably the midfield. Maxi Arnold and Xaver Schlager have been two of the most reliable performers in the Bundesliga for their side over the past couple of seasons, and they are vital for providing Wolfsburg with a solid foundation in the middle of the park in both a defensive and attacking sense. They enable the players in front of them to create and score goals without the fear of being caught out, knowing that they have those two ready to break up any opposition counterattacks at source. But if the front players are not supplying the goals, then Arnold and Schlager, with ten between them this season, will chip in when necessary. Although, with one man in particular up front, Wolfsburg are rarely lacking a route to the back of the net.
Player of the Season: Wout Weghorst
Standing at six feet six inches tall, Dutch striker Weghorst could easily be believed to simply be a target man for Wolfsburg to hit the ball up to or swing crosses in for. Of course, his aerial prowess cannot be understated, but he offers so much more than just his physical presence and it is arguably his knowledge of when to time his runs that is most impressive. The job of the supporting midfielders is made much easier due to the fact that Weghorst is able to lose his marking defender before the pass is even made, always able to find a yard of space to open up the chance. When he is played in on goal as well, there is often little doubt over the end result – 20 Bundesliga goals demonstrating his clinical nature. Unbelievably, he also tops the assist charts for his side with eight. He really is the prime example of an all-round centre-forward and that has not gone unnoticed by Netherlands coach Frank de Boer, who has handed Weghorst his first inclusion in an international squad and it is for the European Championships. A very proud achievement indeed for the big number nine.