Germans abroad: Weekend round-up
German talent is featured around the footballing globe. So we look at the best performances of the weekend from Deutschland's exported talent.
Kai Haverts and Timo Werner joined a long list of German players plying their trade abroad with their moves to Chelsea this summer. With 25 players across the top 4 foreign leagues in Europe, as well as hundreds more all across the globe, Germany’s footballing talent can be found in almost every corner of professional football worldwide.
In this weekly series, we take a look at the weekend performances of Germans around the globe.
Premier League:
Timo Werner & Kai Havertz (Chelsea)
Result: 0:0 D vs Manchester United
Minutes played: Werner 71’ Subbed Off, Haverts 72’ Subbed Off
Chelsea trudged to their second 0:0 draw in the space of 5 days in a flat display against Manchester United. Were it not for an inspired performance by goalkeeper Edouard Mendy, who made an incredible save to keep a 90’ minute Rashford strike out, the Blues could have easily lost this game. Werner and Haverts will need to put in better performances than they did at OId Trafford if they are to retain starting positions in a highly competitive Chelsea frontline.
İlkay Gündoğan (Man. City)
Result: 1:1 vs West Ham
Minutes played: 90’
Just like in their midweek fixture against Portuguese champions Porto, City went down 1:0, this time courtesy of an 18’ goal from Michael Antonio. Yet unlike the fixture on Wednesday, City were unable to turn the deficit into a victory, rather having to settle for a 1:1 draw after youngster Phil Foden found the net in the 51'. Gündoğan looked decent throughout, with his usual high pass percentage of 95%, but the German international was unable to produce an equally impressive display as he did midweek.
Bernd Leno (Arsenal)
Result: 0:1 L vs Leicester City
Minutes played: 90’
After a horrible mistake midweek in the Europa League, Bernd Leno would have been desperate for a clean sheet in Sunday’s fixture, and for a long time it looked likely. Leicester forced Leno into just one save all match, and The Gunners generally dominated the display with 12 shots compared to Leicester’s 6. However, in the 80’ minute substitute Jamie Vardy put home an easy header in the 6 yard box to give the foxes all three points. No chance for Leno on the goal.
Leeds United (Robin Koch)
Result: 3:0 W vs Aston Villa
Minutes played: 90’
Robin Koch continued his streak of featuring in every minute of the current premier league season in Leeds United 3:0 Victory over Aston Villa on Friday. After a shaky opening fixture against reigning champions, the former Freiburg centre back has settled at the Yorkshire club, with Leeds conceding just 1 goal in their last 4 matches. The victory sees Leeds jump to 5th place, and continue their push for European football next season.
La Liga:
Toni Kroos (Real Madrid)
Result: 1:3 W vs Barcelona
Minutes played: 90’
After a week that started with a 0:1 loss to newly promoted Cadiz, and featured a 2:3 loss to Shakhtar Donetsk midweek, Zidane’s side more than ever needed to grab all three points in the Clasico. Real Madrid didn’t disappoint, going on to win 3:1 on Barcelona’s patch, cementing their position at the top of La Liga. Kroos once more provided a reassuring presence in Madrid’s midfield, with the most touches, second highest pass percentage, and most tackles won of any Madrid player.
Ligue 1:
Julian Draxler (PSG)
Result: 4:0 W vs Dijon
Minutes played: 59’ Subbed Off
Thomas Tuchel made 8 changes to the side that lost 2:1 to Manchester United on Tuesday, with one of the players given a chance on Saturday being 27 year old Julian Draxler. The German international looked bright in his 5th Ligue 1 start of the season, playing a beautiful through ball into Neymar’s run to create PSG’s second goal of the night. However things once again took a turn for the worse, with Draxler forced off in the 59’ minute clutching the back of his hamstring. Draxler missed last weekend's victory over Nimes also due to a hamstring injury, so it is a troubling sign for Tuchel that his German midfielder has once again felt a twinge in the same area.
Kevin Volland (AS Monaco)
Result: 4:1 L vs Lyon
Minutes played: 78’ Subbed In
Kevin Volland made his 6th appearance for Niko Kovač’s Monaco over the weekend, coming on in the 78th minute for Gelson Martins. The former Leverkusen striker was unable to strike a memorable comeback from 4:1 down in the 15 minutes he was afforded. Volland is still looking for his first goal in Ligue 1, and Kovač will be immediately under pressure following just 1 point out of his last three fixtures.
Seria A:
Robin Gosens (Atalanta)
Result: 1:3 L vs Sampdoria
Minutes played: 46’ Subbed On
Atalanta were looking to build on their impressive 4:0 away win over FC Midtjylland midweek with a victory over Sampdoria that could see them at least momentarily go top of Seria A. With another important Champions League fixture right around the corner, Gasperini opted to leave out some of his starpower, with Gosens one of the players rested for the Ajax match on Tuesday.
However things did not go to plan, with Atalanta 1:0 behind at halftime. Gasperini responded by bringing on 3 of his starters from midweek, including Gosens, yet it did not have the hoped effect on the outcome. Atalanta ended up losing the match 3:1, and were unable to use this opportunity to lead the race for the Scudetto in Italy.
Julian Chabot (Spezia Calcio)
Result: 2:2 D vs Parma
Minutes played: 90’
Since Spezia’s 4:1 defeat at the hands of Sassuolo on matchday 2, RB Leipzig academy graduate Julian Chabot has started every game for Seria A newcomers Spezia Calcio. In his 4th start for Spezia Chabot added his first goal in Seria A, a powerful header that gave Vincenzo Italiano’s side the lead after 28 minutes. Chabot and the Spezia defense looked set to bring home their second win of the season, before a late penalty saved Parma’s blushes.
Diego Demme (Napoli)
Result: 1:2 W vs Benevento
Minutes Played: 74’ Subbed On
An uneventful Saturday for Diego Demme, who was rested by Genaro Gattuso with the look ahead at Thursday’s away trip to Real Sociedad in the Europa League. Diego Demme did come on in the 74th minute, putting in a typically solid display that helped bring the three points back to Naples. Napoli sit in second place after 5 matchdays, just 1 point off AC Milan at the top of Seria A.
Other:
Mergim Berisha (RB Salzburg- Austrian Bundesliga)
Result: 0: 2 W vs Austria Wien
Minutes played: 63’ Subbed Off
German U21 international Mergim Berisha was once again on the scoresheet for RB Salzburg this weekend, netting his 3rd goal in as many starts on Saturday. A well taken header in the 62nd minute opened the scoring for the reigning Bundesliga champions, and should give Berisha a good chance of starting midweek against Atletico Madrid.
Tom Trybull & Lewis Holtby (Blackburn Rovers- English Championship)
Result: 0:4 W vs Coventry City
Minutes played: Both 90’
Tony Mowbray continued with his German midfield duo of Trybull and Holtby, a decision that paid off against Coventry city with The Blue and Whites winning 4:0. Although the front three of Blackburn was the real highlight, combining for 3 goals and 3 assists, the German duo put in commanding displays. Holtby was a major player in the 4th goal, with a backheel into Harvey Elliot’s path, as well as Tom Trybull commanding the midfield with a 95% pass completion, and not once getting stripped of possession. With Saturday's win, Blackburn sit comfortably in 10th place, just 2 points off Swansea in the final playoff spot.
Mario Vrancic (Norwich City- English Championship)
Result: 2:1 W vs Wycombe Wanderers
Minutes played: 68’ Subbed On
Former Paderborn and Darmstadt striker Mario Vrancic has netted his second goal of the season for Daniel Farke’s Norwich over the weekend, a crucial 90+1’ winner vs Wycombe Wanderers. Vrancic has had to contend with a bit part role this season, playing a combined 84’ minutes across 5 matchdays. However in the last week the German striker has scored two game winners for the Canneries, and if Vrancic continues to offer Farke with crucial late winners, it won’t be long before Vrancic is a fixture in Norwich’s starting XI.
Lasse Sobiech (FC Zürich- Swiss Super League)
Result: 1:4 W vs FC Vaduz
Minutes played: 90’
Lasse Sobiech has hit the ground running in Switzerland since signing in September, with two goals in his 4 appearances for FC Zürich. His goal against Vaduz came as expected from a set piece, with the 1,96m centerback rising to meet a corner and head Zürich in front in the 5th minute. Zürich’s win gives them a crucial three points, having picked up just 1 in their opening three matchdays.
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