The Bundesliga will be back with a bang next week, and league leaders Bayer Leverkusen have the task of holding off the chasing pack, led by title favourites Bayern Munich.
Bayern’s Harry Kane and VfB Stuttgart’s Serhou Guirassy have written most of the Bundesliga 2024 news headlines with their spectacular scoring exploits, and it will be tough to keep them out of the limelight in the second half of the campaign.
But there are plenty of other exciting players in the German top-flight, so we’ve picked our five SBOTOP players to look out for, one from each of the leading clubs including a new arrival and a player fighting back from injury.
Florian Wirtz, Bayer Leverkusen
At 20 years of age, Leverkusen’s attacking midfielder has already picked up 14 caps for Germany, and he’s an established member of Die Werkself’s title-chasing team.
This is remarkable progress for a player who, at the age of 18, suffered an ACL injury which kept him out for almost a year, and he only returned to action at the beginning of 2023.
He’s made a full recovery and has already made seven assists this season, and Wirtz’s all-action style, attacking mindset, pace, and energy can create panic in opposition defences.
Leverkusen boss Xabi Alonso has put together a side capable of challenging Bayern Munich this season, and Wirtz has a big part to play.
Leroy Sane, Bayern Munich
While Kane is ripping up the Bundesliga scoring records, Sane is the league’s top assist maker with eight, and the former Manchester City winger has scored eight goals too.
The two Bayern forwards have formed a lethal partnership, similar to the relationship that Kane had with Heung-Min Son at Tottenham Hotspur. The big difference here is that this pair will, more than likely, pick up some silverware at the end of the campaign.
Sane has already won two Premier League titles with the Sky Blues and three Bundesliga titles with Die Bayern as well as 10 cup winners’ medals.
At 27 years of age, the German international is right in his prime, and that is an exciting thought for Bayern fans, if not for supporters of Leverkusen.
His pace is electric and his dribbling skills mesmerizing, and there is much more to come from Sane in the second half of the campaign.
The latest Bundesliga 2024 betting odds reckon the 2024 title is heading back to Munich, and with Sane providing the ammunition for Kane, it’s hard to argue.
Deniz Undav: VfB Stuttgart
Guirassy is the Stuttgart man everyone is talking about, and he is being watched by a number of Premier League clubs as the January sales loom into view. But his strike partner Undav, on loan from Brighton, has flown under the radar while contributing nine goals to VfB’s top four push.
Undav scored the opener in Stuttgart’s 3-0 win over Augsburg, and he’s a tricky player with a sharp turn of pace and he can find a killer pass.
He has a lot to offer, and he’s one of the key players who will need to keep his standards high if surprise package Stuttgart are to finish in the top four.
Eljif Elmas, RB Leipzig
One of the first big name moves in the January window is the arrival of Elmas to Leipzig after he helped Napoli to win the Scudetto last term.
At 24 years of age, the Macedonian star has bags of potential, and he has already picked up 56 caps for his country, scoring 12 goals.
He can play on the wing or through the middle in the no. 10 role and, with superb ball skills and an eye for goal, Elmas will bring more attacking threat to a team which already has Lois Openda and Timo Werner in its ranks.
Currently fourth, Die Roten Bullen will push the leading three, and Leipzig fans are excited to see how their new man will fit in.
Karim Adeyemi, Borussia Dortmund
Another attacking player, who can operate out wide or through the middle, Adeyemi made his name at RB Salzburg before he signed for Borussia Dortmund in the summer of last season.
Still only 21 years old, he is developing his game, but Adeyemi has been hampered recently by a muscle injury, sustained during a Champions League clash with PSG in December.
Reports in the German press suggested he would be out for a few weeks, and Adeyemi has already missed the 1-1 draws with Augsburg and Mainz.
BVB are hopeful of making progress in the Champions League, having won their group, and they have ground to make up in the Bundesliga title race. The club won’t rush Adeyemi back since he needs to be fully fit, but then, he hopefully has a big four months ahead of him.
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