USA’s young gem among top 5 Bundesliga players under the radar
Published:There has been plenty of movement around the increasingly competitive-looking Bundesliga ahead of the new campaign, with a number of under-the-radar talents hopping from club to club in search of fresh challenges.
However, the first of our top five to look out for in Germany’s top flight this term will be eager to make the move from the fringes of the champions’ first team into the big time in 2014/15…
Bayern Munich’s Julian Green
Expect this much-lauded forward – who scored with his first touch in extra-time against Belgium to become USA’s youngest ever scorer at the World Cup earlier this month – to continue his impressive development under Pep Guardiola.
Having struck 15 Regionalliga Bayern goals in 23 appearances for Bayern Munich II in 2012/13, Green made his senior Die Rotten debut off the bench in the Champions League against CSKA Moscow last November.
Spurs were thought to be in for the 19-year-old this summer, but a mooted £5m fee would likely be laughed out of the Allianz Arena.
Hannover’s Hiroshi Kiyotake
A former reported target of Aston Villa, Kiyotake recently jumped ship from relegated Nurnberg into the arms of Hannover, who posted a 10th-place Bundesliga finish in 2013/14.
The 25-cap Japan man struck three league goals and laid on another eight for teammates in a struggling side, and after being granted just five minutes of action by former Samurai Blue boss Alberto Zaccheroni in Brazil, the 24-year-old will be out to prove a point this term.
Schalke’s Max Meyer
This 18-year-old attacking-midfielder isn’t likely to stay under the radar for very long, despite the presence of fellow Die Mannschaft bright young things Julian Draxler and Leon Goretzka within the Die Konigsblauen forward ranks.
Meyer made 21 Bundesliga starts for Schalke last term, scoring six goals, providing three assists and successfully completing three dribbles a game on average, which put him on par with Bayern’s Arjen Robben in terms of beating players, according to WhoScored.com.
Paderborn’s Marvin Ducksch
Coach Andre Breitenreiter’s second tier runners-up Paderborn will strut their stuff on German football’s big stage for the first time in 2014/15, and they’ll need plenty of help from Borussia Dortmund’s Ducksch, who has been picked up on loan for the campaign.
The 20-year-old notched 21 times in 56 matches for BVB’s second side between 2012-14, and struck for Jurgen Klopp’s seniors last term against SV Wilhelmshaven in the DFB Pokal cup.
Wolfsburg’s Sebastian Jung
Die Wolfe already boast top-class international quartet Maximilian Arnold, Kevin De Bruyne, Luiz Gustavo and Ivan Perisic within their ranks, with whispers currently circulating that Chelsea’s Romelu Lukaku could be on his way to the Volkswagen Arena.
However, the capture of Jung – who laid on seven Bundesliga assists for an Eintracht Frankfurt side that claimed the second-best defensive record in the bottom half of the division last term – could be equally significant.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
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