GK, Lukáš Hrádecký (Bayer Leverkusen): Borussia Mönchengladbach endured a miserable afternoon as they lost 4-0 to Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday evening, but the ‘Werkself’ took advantage of their struggles. Hrádecký’s save from Lars Stindl’s penalty came at a crucial point in the match, and it was one of several impressive stops he made on a deceptively busy day for the Finland shot-stopper.
RB, Jeremie Frimpong (Bayer Leverkusen): Against Bayern last week, Gladbach’s Joe Scally impressed on his maiden Bundesliga start, but he struggled badly against Leverkusen. That was mainly down to the partnership of Frimpong and Moussa Diaby down the right flank – the duo never gave the young American a moment’s rest.
CB, Nico Schlotterbeck (Freiburg): Freiburg’s 2-1 defeat of Borussia Dortmund on Saturday came as a shock. While Christian Streich’s side were efficient in attack, their victory was built on a solid defence marshalled by Schlotterbeck. Erling Braut Haaland barely got a kick thanks to the defender’s efforts.
CB, Armel Bella-Kotchap (VfL Bochum): Newly-promoted Bochum are underway in the Bundesliga thanks to their 2-0 victory over Mainz on Saturday. Bella-Kotchap was the star of the show – as per SofaScore, he made 16 clearances and prevailed in 15 of his 19 duels.
LB, Mitchel Bakker (Bayer Leverkusen): Given the comprehensive nature of their win over Gladbach, it would have been easy to name 11 Leverkusen players in this Team of the Week. Another star performer at the BayArena was Bakker, who provided an assist and caused several problems in just his second appearance for his new side.
CM, Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund): The defeat to Freiburg, Marco Rose’s first since joining from Mönchengladbach, is a blow to Dortmund’s title hopes. One of the few bright sparks for the ‘Schwarzgelben’ was Bellingham, who continues to shine despite his young age.
CM, Xaver Schlager (Wolfsburg): Wolfsburg are the only side in the Bundesliga to have won both of their opening games after coming from behind to beat Hertha Berlin 2-1. As always, Schlager was a nuisance in the middle of the park and also provided the assist for Ridle Baku’s equaliser.
AM, Dominik Szoboszlai (RB Leipzig): A long-term injury meant Friday’s clash against Stuttgart was Szoboszlai’s first start for Leipzig since signing from Salzburg in January. His full debut was worth the wait thanks to his two wonderful goals in a 4-0 drubbing. The 20-year-old has all the attributes to become a Bundesliga star.
RW, Moussa Diaby (Bayer Leverkusen): Diaby was in wonderful form against Gladbach, racking up a goal and an assist. The 22-year-old’s decision-making is at times questionable, but there is no doubting his dribbling ability and blistering speed with the ball at his feet.
ST, André Silva (RB Leipzig): Silva was Leipzig’s star signing this summer, coming in from Eintracht Frankfurt for over €20m, and he is now underway after scoring from the penalty spot against Stuttgart. He provided an assist, too, and would have had more goals to his name had it not been for some good Florian Müller stops.
LW, Serge Gnabry (Bayern Munich): Julian Nagelsmann will be livid with his side blowing a two-goal lead in three minutes against FC Köln. Fortunately for him, Gnabry was on hand to score the winner in a 3-2 victory after already netting the strike that put the champions 2-0 ahead. The 26-year-old looks as sharp as ever and will be crucial to Bayern’s title challenge.
Bundesliga Team of the Week | Matchday 2 2021/22
