The relegation playoff is done and players are heading off to their national teams, some for World Cup qualifying, some for international tournaments. What better time to release a team of the year. So without further ado here is the Prost Amerika Bundesliga team of the season.
With an unorthodox 4-1-3-2 formation we start between the posts.
Goalkeeper: Some would say you have to pick Manuel Neuer but with that Bayern team he really didn’t do much over the course of the season so Swiss international Yann Sommer gets the nod. Borussia Monchengladbach hired Andre Schubert and it was a full scale attack on Bundesliga defenses. Admittedly the defense was open to the counter attack and Sommer was the difference maker on more than one occasion in helping the Foals reach the Champions League for a second year running.
Right Back: Shouldn’t be a surprise but Jonathan Tah was the best. At Leverkusen he blossomed as he was given the role and he grasped it with both hands. This is a star in the making and his progress has been significant. At only 20 years old he has cemented his role at a club that will be challenging for Europe and playing in the Champions League. His commission from the Euro squad will fuel him next season.
Center Backs: Aytac Sulu gets a nod due to what was accomplished. Darmstadt was the fairy tale story of a club from near oblivion rose up. Sulu was there through it all. He scored the winning goal in the derby against Frankfurt and six others. End of, without out him they would have been relegated and quite possibly bottom of the table. His omission from the Turkey Euro squad while harsh is more down to politics than the skill of the player.
Other center back is Mats Hummels. Yes he is making the move to Bayern Munich but Dortmund and him both rebounded after a horrible 14-15 season. His passing will be coveted by Munich and new manager Carlo Ancelotti. So many clubs would’ve spent a lot more for his skills from the Premier League but he chose to stay in the Bundesliga because after the loss in the Europa League at Anfield it was made to him that trophies can be won easier and more often down in Bavaria.
Left Back: Jonas Hector gets the nod. Playing a left or right defender or fullback isn’t ever a grand and glorious position with few exceptions. This German is in the national team because while playing for a team like FC Koln he was in the line-up every weekend and busted his bum for the club which finished in the top half of the table for the first time in ages. It is not a sprint, its a marathon, and via his performances he is on the German national team for this summer’s European Championships.
Defensive Midfielder: Tiny bit of a man crush for this player who was so much part of Monchengladbach making the Champions League but Granit Xhaka, recent acquisition of Arsenal of the English Premier League. He was a real hard man who will find the English league a fun place to get stuck in. His aggressiveness was something that was admirable and while he would be a bit of a hot head he was something that made the Foals such a handful. Worth the 35 million pounds the English spent on the player.
Left Midfield: Raffael is a seasoned pro who at Borussia Monchengladbach was vital to their push for the Champions League. Not only scoring 15 goals but 11 assists he was consistent in terms of a performer and at 31 he is not a player who is a sexy pick for a team of the year but screw it this player was what pushed the club forward after the bad start to begin the year.
Right Midfield: The Armenian Henrikh Mkhitaryan was in 14-15 a flop. 15-16 was the kind of absolute unbelievable show that was promised when he signed for rather big money from Shaktar Donetsk. 11 goals and 15 assists with his pace and creativity was something scary when Borussia Dortmund was in full attacking force.
Central Midfield: Julian Weigl made the jump for a modest fee from 1860 Munich to Borussia Dortmund and suddenly under Thomas Tuchel he was the nuts. He bossed games in a way that relieved the pressure on other players such as Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Ilkay Gundogan, and Shinji Kagawa. He made the jump from the divisions will grace and shouldered the responsibility with such class that playing in the Champions League next year he will be seen by the rest of the world as an absolute star.
Forwards: Kind of a no brainier here as the two strikers are different players. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and his speed was something that baffles defenses in the Bundesliga. Many teams have been rumored to be circling around him but the fact is that the reigning African Footballer of the Year put in the best season in recent memory of anyone from the African continent. Shame that his 25 goals dried up at the end or he would have won the torschutzenkonig, the the top scorer of the year.
Speaking of torschutzenkonig, the top scorer who wins the Torjagerkanone trophy. It is Robert Lewandowski. He scored five goals in nine minutes and ended the season on 30. Not gonna like that is absolutely unbelievable and while there were excellent choices this player was one of the very best and cannot wait to see him this summer for Poland in the European Championships.
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