Outside90’s Ari Papas selects the standout performers from the latest round of Bundesliga action for our Team of the Week.
Bernd Leno – Goalkeeper – Bayer Leverkusen
Leverkusen solidified their position in third with a professional 3-0 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt. A clean sheet was well-earned by custodian Bernd Leno, who had a fantastic night in between the sticks. The German made seven saves and was cool inside the penalty box in order to keep out Frankfurt attacks. It was an excellent performance that has kept Die Werkself in the running for an automatic Champions League spot.
Rafinha – Right-back – Bayern Munich
Bayern have been experiencing a defensive injury crisis since the new year, but their back-up stars have maintained the high standards of the Bavarian club. Rafinha was standing in for long-term right-back Philipp Lahm, a job which he performed excellently in a 3-0 win over Schalke. The Brazilian had a 93% passing success rate and moved forward to assist Robert Lewandowski’s second goal of the night. The 30-year-old excelled in all areas of the pitch as Bayern close in on another Bundesliga title.
Salif Sane – Central-defence – Hannover 96
An astounding 2-0 win over Borussia Monchengladbach gave Hannover 96 a small hope of escaping relegation. The victory was a direct result of Salif Sane’s incredible defensive performance against one of the highest scoring clubs in the Bundesliga. The Senegalese defender made eight aerial interceptions and won 90% of his tackles to keep out Gladbach’s destructive strikers. It was an amazing night for Sane as he earned one of Hannover’s best clean sheets of the season.
Fabian Schar – Central-defence – Hoffenheim
Hoffenheim’s great recent run continued with a 2-1 victory over Hertha Berlin. It looked as though their form was turning around as the visiting Hertha scored in the opening 25 minutes, however, Fabian Schar struck back six minutes later to level the scores with a header from a set piece. The 24-year-old was solid throughout the rest of the match, winning 60% of his challenges and maintaining a passing accuracy of 85%.
Benjamin Henrichs – Left-back – Bayer Leverkusen
Youngster Benjamin Henrichs was on full display as Leverkusen dispatched Frankfurt 3-0. The 19-year-old showed great maturity on the wing to contain the left-side by winning over 80% of his defensive challenges. The German also moved forward into attack with Julian Brandt and posed a threat on the counter for his side.
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Karim Bellarabi – Right-wing – Bayer Leverkusen
The excellent wing-play of Roger Schmidt’s side was on show in their win over Frankfurt, with both wingers finding the net. Karim Bellarabi has established himself as one of the best for the role in the Bundesliga and he showed why with a brilliant performance. The 26-year-old assisted Leverkusen’s second goal of the night and then recorded his own to round off the 3-0 victory. The German’s accurate shot secured the three points for his side and has put them in pole position to finish third on the table with four matches to go.
Arturo Vidal – Central-midfield – Bayern Munich
The Chilean came under some criticism earlier in the season, but he has begun to really show his worth with a hot streak of goals which continued in Bayern’s 3-0 win over Schalke. Arturo Vidal had a wonderful performance, controlling the midfield with a 95% passing success rate, while almost 10% of the team’s total possession can be attributed to him. The 28-year-old had three shots on target, including a close-range finish to put the Bavarians up 3-0. Needless to say, the game was effectively over after Lewandowski’s brace, but the goal will be great for Vidal’s confidence.
Zlatko Junuzovic – Central-midfield – Werder Bremen
Werder Bremen condemned VfL Wolfsburg to another heat breaking loss with a brilliant attacking performance in a 3-2 win. 28-year-old Zlatko Junuzovic assisted twice in a man of the match performance and he also contributed six shots on target. The Austrian was brilliant in his attacking play, having a central role in all forward movement and creating an unstoppable strike force.
Christian Pulisic – Left-wing – Borussia Dortmund
There was a lot of hype surrounding Christian Pulisic from his home country of the USA and he lived up to expectations with his first Bundesliga goal in a 3-0 win over Hamburg. The 17-year-old had a passing success rate of 90% and had two shots on goal, one of which was Dortmund’s opener. The American is now the fourth youngest to find the net in Bundesliga history (the youngest being BVB team-mate Nuri Sahin).
Robert Lewandowski – Striker – Bayern Munich
Robert Lewandowski was back among the goals with a second-half brace to put Schalke to the sword in Bayern’s 3-0 win. The Polish international made sure that he went four goals clear of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang with two cool close range finishes and the 27-year-old is in pole position to take out the top scorer accolade for this season’s Bundesliga.
Adrian Ramos – Striker – Borussia Dortmund
Adrian Ramos has experienced an incredible upturn in form as he scored twice against Hamburg. The Columbian has been scoring consistently since the New Year and had his best performance yet with this brace. At 30-years-old, he showed that he is still useful to Dortmund by winning 80% of his aerial challenges and attempting five shots on goal.
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