Jesvin's Column: 10 non-German Bundesliga stars to watch out for at the Euros
The German National Team is filled with a a plethora of Bundesliga stars, but there are numerous non-German international stars who will be representing both the league and their own countries on the European stage. Here are 10 to keep your eye on.
| André Silva. | Photo: Кирилл Венедиктов, Soccer.ru, CC BY-SA 3.0 |
The Portuguese forward set the Bundesliga alight in the past season, netting an impressive 28 goals from 32 appearances. Spearheading a scary Eintracht Frankfurt team, who missed out on Champions League qualification on the last day of the season, the 25-year-old will be looking to take his club form with him to the tournament this summer for the defending champions Portugal.
Andrej Kramaric, Croatia (TSG Hoffenheim)
Another prolific Bundesliga forward who will be looking to bring his Bundesliga shooting boots to the tournament, Andrej Kramaric has had another successful season for the Sinsheim-based side, bagging 20 goals and notching up 5 assists in his 28 appearances for Hoffenheim. Both him and Wolfsburg winger Josip Brekalo will be looking to bring success to the runners-up from the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Marcel Sabitzer, Austria (RB Leipzig)
From 2 prolific Bundesliga marksmen to a creative genius, Marcel Sabitzer has once again had an excellent season for RB Leipzig. Sabitzer scored 8 times and laid on 3 assists for a Leipzig team that looked like genuine title contenders but had to settle for 2nd in the ladder behind Bayern Munich. The Austrian side has plenty of Bundesliga talent in the ranks and Sabitzer will be looking to set the tournament alight with his national side.
Yann Sommer, Switzerland (Borussia Mönchengladbach)
The Swiss shot-stopper kept 5 clean sheets for a Gladbach side that really dropped off midway through the season and haven't looked the same since the announcement of Marco Rose's departure to Borussia Dortmund. Nevertheless, Sommer made 86 saves in the 31 games he played in the Bundesliga last season and will go into the European Championships as Switzerland's number 1 looking to get the Swiss as far as possible at EURO 2020.
Jude Bellingham, England (Borussia Dortmund)
Watching Bellingham play makes you think "how is he only 17 years old?" That is how good Jude Bellingham has been in his debut season for Die Schwarzgelben. A meteoric rise for the Stourbridge-born boy has seen him go from Championship football at 16 to making his England senior debut at 17. In between those 2 events, Bellingham has performed exceptionally well for Borussia Dortmund in all competitions and will be one to watch for England during their campaign.
Emil Forsberg, Sweden (RB Leipzig)
The 2nd RB Leipzig creative threat, Emil Forsberg had another productive season for Die Roten Bullen. Finishing the season with 7 goals and 4 assists from 29 games, the Swedish playmaker played an important role in Leipzig securing 2nd place in the Bundesliga standings. Sweden have been named as a potential dark horse with a promising core coming through including Forsberg himself as well as former Dortmund striker Alexander Isak, and Juventus winger Dejan Kulusevski, and they will be a team to watch out for during the tournament.
Robert Lewandowski, Poland (Bayern Munich)
Quite possibly the greatest ever non-German to play in the Bundesliga, it is impossible to talk about a list of non-Germans in the Bundesliga and not include Robert Lewandowski. Breaking Gerd Müller's 49-year Bundesliga record for most goals in a single season has cemented Lewandowski's legacy as a Bundesliga legend. 41 goals in 29 games is absurd and he is once again going to be the focal point of Poland's charge at EURO 2020.
Jadon Sancho, England (Borussia Dortmund)
The Englishman has once again performed exceptionally for BVB this season, not to the same level as he did in the 2019/20 season, where he amassed a total of 33 goals and assists in 32 games, but 8 goals and 11 assists in 26 games is very very good. Again linked with a summer move away from Dortmund, Sancho will look to use EURO 2020 as a shop window to potentially increase his price and attract more suitors. He, alongside BVB teammate Jude Bellingham will be key to England's charge towards European glory.
Wout Weghorst, Netherlands (VfL Wolfsburg)
Another nation, another top Bundesliga forward hoping to fire his nation to European Championship glory. This time, it is the 20-goal hitman Wout Weghorst who could be lining up for the Netherlands at EURO 2020. Weghorst's 20 goals and 8 assists fired Wolfsburg into the top 4 and qualified for the Champions League last season, and he will look to build upon his good form from the Bundesliga season and help the Netherlands secure their second European Championship.
Raphael Guerreiro, Portugal (Borussia Dortmund)
One of the most versatile and underrated players in the world, Raphael Guerreiro once again had a fantastic season from the left-back position. 5 goals and 11 assists put him 2nd behind Atalanta's Robin Gosens for most goals and assists combined for defenders in the top-5 leagues, and those 16 goals and assists helped Dortmund qualify for the Champions League and win the DFB-Pokal. Guerreiro has already got a European Championship trophy in his cabinet and will look to make it 2 in a row with a strong Portugal side.
Below is the list of every single Bundesliga player that has been named in their respective squads for EURO 2020.
All Bundesliga players taking part in EURO 2020:
Austria: Pavao Pervan (Wolfsburg), David Alaba (Bayern), Aleksandar Dragović (Leverkusen), Marco Friedl (Werder Bremen), Martin Hinteregger (Frankfurt), Stefan Lainer (Mönchengladbach), Philipp Lienhart (Freiburg), Stefan Posch (Hoffenheim), Julian Baumgartlinger (Leverkusen), Christoph Baumgartner (Hoffenheim), Florian Grillitsch (Hoffenheim), Stefan Ilsanker (Frankfurt), Konrad Laimer (Leipzig), Karim Onisiwo (Mainz), Marcel Sabitzer (Leipzig), Xaver Schlager (Wolfsburg), Alessandro Schöpf (Schalke), Christopher Trimmel (Union Berlin), Michael Gregoritsch (Augsburg), Sasa Kalajdzic (Stuttgart)
Belgium: Thomas Meunier (Dortmund), Dedryck Boyata (Hertha Berlin), Thorgan Hazard (Dortmund), Axel Witsel (Dortmund)
Croatia: Josko Gvardiol (Leipzig), Josip Brekalo (Wolfsburg), Andrej Kramaric (Hoffenheim)
Czech Republic: Jiri Pavlenka (Werder Bremen), Pavel Kaderabek (Hoffenheim), Vladimir Darida (Hertha Berlin), Patrik Schick (Leverkusen)
Denmark: Frederik Ronnow (Schalke), Thomas Delaney (Dortmund), Robert Skov (Hoffenheim), Yussuf Poulsen (Leipzig)
England: Jude Bellingham (Dortmund), Jadon Sancho (Dortmund)
Finland: Lukas Hradecky (Leverkusen), Fredrik Jensen (Augsburg), Joel Pohjanpalo (Union Berlin)
France: Lucas Hernandez (Bayern), Benjamin Pavard (Bayern), Kingsley Coman (Bayern), Corentin Tolisso (Bayern), Marcus Thuram (Mönchengladbach)
Germany: Manuel Neuer (Bayern), Kevin Trapp (Frankfurt), Emre Can (Dortmund), Matthias Ginter (Mönchengladbach), Christian Günter (Freiburg), Marcel Halstenberg (Leipzig), Mats Hummels (Dortmund), Lukas Klostermann (Leipzig), Niklas Süle (Bayern), Serge Gnabry (Bayern), Leon Goretzka (Bayern) Jonas Hofmann (Mönchengladbach), Joshua Kimmich (Bayern), Jamal Musiala (Bayern), Florian Neuhaus (Mönchengladbach), Leroy Sané (Bayern), Thomas Müller (Bayern)
Hungary: Peter Gulacsi (Leipzig), Willi Orban (Leipzig), Roland Sallai (Freiburg), Adam Szalai (Mainz)
Netherlands: Wout Weghorst (Wolfsburg)
North Macedonia: Darko Churlinov (Stuttgart)
Poland: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern)
Portugal: Raphael Guerriro (Dortmund), Andre Silva (Frankfurt)
Slovakia: Peter Pekarik (Hertha Berlin), Laszlo Benes (Augsburg), Ondrej Duda (Köln)
Spain: Dani Olmo (Leipzig)
Sweden: Ludwig Augustinsson (Werder Bremen), Emil Forsberg (Leipzig), Robin Quaison (Mainz)
Switzerland: Yann Sommer (Mönchengladbach), Manuel Akanji (Dortmund), Nico Elvedi (Mönchengladbach), Kevin Mbabu (Wolfsburg), Edimilson Fernandes (Mainz), Djibril Sow (Frankfurt), Ruben Vargas (Augsburg), Denis Zakaria (Mönchengladbach), Steven Zuber (Frankfurt), Breel Embolo (Mönchengladbach), Admir Mehmedi (Wolfsburg)