GGFN Awards | Bundesliga Team of the Season: The Winners | OneFootball

Bayern Munich dominated the Bundesliga, reclaiming their crown from Bayer Leverkusen. As such, five players have shone under Vincent Kompany in the Belgian’s first season in charge of the Rekordmeister, in which the Belgian guided Bayern to their best points tally in the top flight since the 2017/18 campaign.

To select the TOTS, your votes over the course of the past week have been weighted 50/50 with the Get German Football News team’s picks, with the players selected into a 4-2-3-1 formation.

Goalkeeper – Robin Zentner (Mainz)

For most of his career, Robin Zentner has never caught the eye due to him playing for a mid-table Mainz side; however, this season, the Mainz captain has taken the step up.

Mainz head coach Bo Henriksen built a strong defence, and Zentner was a key part of it. Via FBref, the 30-year-old made the third most saves, had the fourth highest save percentage and ranked fourth for post-shot xG in the whole league. Zentner’s performances have helped Mainz concede the joint third fewest goals in the league and, most importantly, qualify for the Conference League this season.

While names like Finn Dahmen and Noah Atubolu may garner more attention due to their age, Zentner’s contributions have been just as important. What makes this all the more impressive is that Stefan Bell, Paul Nebel and Jonathan Burkardt, Zentner are products of the Mainz academy. Jack Meenan

Right-back – Rasmus Kristensen (Eintracht Frankfurt)

The Danish international had struggled at Leeds and in Serie A with Roma, however, in Eintracht Frankfurt he has seemed to of found his home. Comfortable as either a right-back or a right-sided centre-back in a back three, Rasmus Kristensen has proven to be not only a valuable piece on the pitch but also off it in this youthful Frankfurt side. Off the pitch, the 27-year-old clearly holds himself to a high standard, and you can also feel the intensity that he brings through the screen.

This intensity transpires onto the pitch as well, especially when he is playing as a wing-back, with him regularly marauding down the wing and getting into the opponent’s box. In the final three games of the season, Kristensen scored in all three. Considering his performances this season, the €6m paid to Leeds to make his loan permanent already looks like it has paid off. JM

Centre-back – Jonathan Tah (Bayer Leverkusen)

Wherever Jonathan Tah ends up in the summer will be getting themselves a world class defender and although Bayer Leverkusen’s recruitment has rarely missed under Simon Rolfes, whomever replaces the German will have big shoes to fill. The 29-year-old has long-established himself as one of the Bundesliga’s leading defenders and has showcased over the years his excellent skillset.

At 195cm, he’s naturally strong in aerial duels. No player in the Bundesliga has won more aerial duels (77%) than Tah this season, further elevating his game under Xabi Alonso, who has carved the German defender into one of the league’s leading ball-carriers – only two players have carried the ball more than Tah this season.

While Bayer Leverkusen’s performances weren’t on-par in comparison to last season, where they won the Bundesliga and German Cup, Tah was again a leading performer for die Werkself. The 2023/24 double campaign was always going to be hard to replicate and Leverkusen nearly conceded double the amount of goals in the Bundesliga, but different factors such as key injuries and the constant changing of goalkeepers certainly contributed. Daniel Pinder

Centre-back – Nico Schlotterbeck (Borussia Dortmund)

Following the departure of Mats Hummels last summer, Nico Schlotterbeck has adapted and established himself as a leader within this Borussia Dortmund squad. While not dominant in the air, the 25-year-old has created a formidable partnership with Emre Can and has been near-faultless domestically, barring a couple of rash decision-making but has again proved why he’s among the elite.

Schlotterbeck’s development has continued in an upward trajectory – even with a change of coach midway through a season – and the appointment of Niko Kovac has only aided the German’s rise, perfecting his game. Strong in a one-on-one duel, Schlotterbeck is also a standout player when progressing the ball. The left-footed centre-back leads other Bundesliga defenders in progressive passes, passes into the final third and progressive actions, all while remaining a rock in central-defence.

There’s few better defenders than Schlotterbeck in the Bundesliga, who has elevated his ball-winning ability and exudes calmness when in possession, often launching Borussia Dortmund’s counter-attack from the defensive third. DP

Left-back – Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich)

“I’m not going to lie, that was hard. I had a mental breakdown. I don’t know what came over me. I went to take a shower, and I just broke down in tears,” Davies revealed his struggles after sustaining a cruciate ligament injury while on international duty in March which would see him ruled out until well into the 2025/26 season. But the Canadian left-back had established himself as a leading Bundesliga left-back before that. He ranked in the 99th percentile for progressive carries for left-backs in Europe’s top five leagues while posting excellent numbers in successful take-ons and passing statistics.

Notably against Bayer Leverkusen, Davies won 7 duels, made 4 clearances and won 100% of his tackles (3/3), while also finding the net. It was a complete performance from the 24-year-old who is far better going forward than he is at defending but again showed on numerous occasions he excellent recovery ability. In the absence of Davies, Bayern Munich have no doubt struggled at left-back which showcases the Canadian’s importance to the Bundesliga champions. DP

Central-midfield – Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich)

Expectations are always high for Joshua Kimmich and after a trophyless 2023/24 season, the pressure was certainly on. Often unfazed by the big occasions, Joshua Kimmich again showcased why he’s one of football’s leading and most decorated central-midfielders. A midfield maestro, no player completed more passes than Kimmich (3,183) in the Bundesliga this season, the most in any season, finishing the campaign with a 92.9% accuracy. He also completed the most passes into the final third (979), well ahead of Bayer Leverkusen duo Granit Xhaka (821) and Florian Wirtz (652).

When you have players like Michael Olise and Jamal Musiala in your squad, it’s easy to forget players such as Kimmich, but his role allows others around him to play to their strengths. No player has more touches of the ball than Kimmich (3867) across Europe’s Top 5 Leagues this season while he leads the way for Progressive Carrying Distance (5197 yards) in the Bundesliga, and ranks 10th for Shot Creating Actions/90 (5.03).

It’s hard to find a single fault in Kimmich’s game and with a recent contract extension, Bayern Munich are set in central-midfield for the foreseeable future. DP

Central-midfield – Angelo Stiller (Stuttgart)

Individually, Angelo Stiller has been great this season, however, Stuttgart have still struggled on the pitch, and that saw them crash out of the Champions League and finish ninth in the league. However, a win in the DFB Pokal final will mask most of this.

The Munich native continues to show that he is the one who got away for Bayern. He has continued to make strides in his development under Sebastian Hoeneß. The 24-year-old continues to be a joy to watch on the ball, and he shows his superb passing range and ability.

If Stuttgart are to return to its rightful place in the Bundesliga top four, Stiller will be the most important cog in the side. With Real Madrid and Liverpool both interested in the midfielder, losing him could be catastrophic to the project that is being built at the MHP Arena. The 24-year-old is also expected to be the natural heir to Joshua Kimmich and should partner Aleksandar Pavlovic in the German midfield. JM

Right-wing – Michael Olise (Bayern Munich)

Questions were raised after Bayern Munich missed out on Désiré Doué and opted to sign Michael Olise instead, but so few could have predicted the Frenchman’s importance so early in his career at the eventual Bundesliga champions. The 23-year-old would have to compete alongside Leroy Sane, Serge Gnabry, Kingsley Coman and Jamal Musiala for a starting berth, but he stepped up.

Olise featured in every Bundesliga game for Bayern Munich this season and was quick off the starting blocks. With three goals and two assists in his opening four league games, the Frenchman would quickly show what he was capable of. While his goalscoring output dropped off, would register eight assists in nine games and in the final eight games of the season would score four and provide eight assists – finishing the campaign on 12 goals and 18 assists in 34 Bundesliga games. There’s no doubt Olise’s performances helped Bayern Munich reclaim their Bundesliga crown from Bayer Leverkusen.

Michael Olise was also named Get German Football News’ Player and Signing of the Season. DP

Attacking-midfield – Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich)

Jamal Musiala’s performances certainly raised eyebrows and even drew a small amount of criticism this season but even after an injury-ravaged campaign that saw the German miss eight Bundesliga games through injury, the 22-year-old has developed his game under Vincent Kompany. There’s no doubt that alongside Michael Olise, Musiala was arguably Bayern’s best performer in the first half of the season, scoring nine goals in 13 league games, and providing two assists.

Musiala doesn’t rank first in any category in the Bundesliga this season but has shown consistency. Operating behind Harry Kane, Musiala ranks in the 98th percentile for Successful Take-Ons (3.21 per 90) and in the 95th percentile for Shot-Creating Actions (5.85 per 90) compares to positional peers across Europe’s Top 5 Leagues. Had injuries and fatigue not set in, Musiala could well have gone on to claim Player of the Season had he carried his form over into 2025, where he registered three goals and one assist. DP

Left-wing – Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen)

Perhaps German football’s most exciting phenom once again had to deal with hard injury luck this season, yet overcame  a gravely serious ankle injury and managed to make even more Bundesliga appearances than last year. Wirtz made 31 league appearances, recording 23 goal contributions (10 goals, 13 assists) in the process.

With all the mega-millions transfer hype surrounding the 22-year-old, it’s difficult to fathom that Wirtz actually only made his Champions League debut this past autumn. The versatile attacker made an immediate impact on the highest level, bagging a brace against Feyenoord Rotterdam in his first UCL match.

Wirtz produced many performances this year that won’t soon be forgotten. His brace in the opening league round’s 3-2 win against Gladbach and his four goal contributions (one goal and three assists) in December’s 5-1 victory over Freiburg will stick in the memory. In both matches, Wirtz proved his resilience after missing from the penalty spot.

Another season in which Bayer Leverkusen head coach Xabi Alonso thought out various tactical roles for his incredible talent showcased Wirtz remarkable instincts on the top two attacking axes. Wirtz collected 19 assists across all competitions for club and country against an xAssists metric of just 14.11 – via kicker. Peter Weis

Striker – Harry Kane (Bayern Munich)

Harry Kane, Bundesliga champion. The Englishman has finally won his first major trophy. The 31-year-old registered 36 goal contributions (26 goals and 10 assists) in 31 Bundesliga games this season – 38 goals and 13 assists in 46 games across all competitions. He came in for criticism and not being able to turn up in the big games, but he did that towards the end of the season when needed, especially with three of Bayern’s five goals against Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League, and a goal against Inter in the quarterfinals.

While not replicating last season’s tally, Kane involved himself in build-up play more under Vincent Kompany and worked hard defensively. Kane, an all-round world class player. He also became the quickest player to reach 50 Bundesliga goals this season, beating Erling Haaland’s Borussia Dortmund record. DP

The Bench: Noah Atubolu (Freiburg); Anthony Caci (Mainz), Dominik Kohr (Mainz); Nadiem Amiri (Mainz), Kaishu Sano (Mainz); Lee Jae-sung (Mainz); Serhou Guirassy (Borussia Dortmund)

GGFN | News Desk