The relatively quiet January transfer window has slammed shut in the Bundesliga and the action can get back underway this weekend.
A few new faces have crossed the pond from the MLS and Wolfsburg have an old familiar name back up top ahead of Matchday 21 (MD21).
Here are our Fantasy Bundesliga picks for the weekend – and, to keep things interesting, there’s no Robert Lewandowski or Erling Haaland in this squad, as always!
SIGN UP TO FANTASY BUNDESLIGA AND PICK A TEAM HERE
GOALKEEPERS
ROBIN ZENTNER (6.5m), MANUEL RIEMANN (6.0m)
Mainz and Hoffenheim have been in slumps as of late, with both sides three games without a win in all competitions. They’ve been better at home throughout the season, which gives Mainz – and Robin Zentner – the upper hand in this clash. Mainz have clean sheets in their last three home games and six at home all season, which bodes well for sixth-highest scoring keeper Zentner. Hoffenheim also have a high shot volume, taking the fifth-most shots so far, which should lead to save points.
Bochum play tonight and it’s no secret what Manuel Riemann can do on his day. The third-highest scoring keeper this campaign, Riemann has also made the third-most saves. Although Bochum are a much stronger side at home than on the road, Hertha Berlin come into this clash winless in four games. Hertha have been woefully inconsistent this season and playing some very poor football under Tayfun Korkut, so it would not be a surprise to see Bochum take all three points here.
DEFENDERS
NIKO GIESSELMANN (5.2m), JEROME ROUSSILLON (6.6m), JEREMIAH ST JUSTE (6.8m), NICO SCHLOTTERBECK (9.4m), EVEN NDICKA (10.8m)
Union Berlin’s schedule has quietened down and Max Kruse has headed to Wolfsburg, both of which might be good pieces of news for Niko Giesselmann. He should resecure his place in the league line-up and Kruse’s departure may see Union work more play through their wing-backs. A stalwart of this squad through the first half of the season, Giesselmann still averages eight fantasy points per game and picked up an assist in the Matchday 20 (MD20) win over Gladbach. With three goals and four assists already this season, Giesselmann is a great cheap pick ahead of his visit to inconsistent Augsburg.
Wolfsburg are very bad but so are Greuther Fürth, so this is a tie that Wolfsburg have to win. If they don’t, then relegation becomes a very legitimate possibility for a side who won the Bundesliga just over a decade ago. Jerome Roussillon has been one of the few bright sparks for the Wolves recently, with 22 Fantasy points from his last two games. Wolfsburg should – and really have to – win this game, where Roussillon could score big in the process.
Jeremiah St. Juste has the second-highest average points tally amongst defenders in Fantasy Bundesliga, due to winning a lot of duels and taking regular shots. The Mainz speedster picked up 25 points in his last home league game and is part of a defence, like Zentner, who have clean sheets in their last three home games. Hoffenheim are a strong side in poor form, sometimes susceptible in set-piece situations.
Nico Schlotterbeck is quickly becoming one of the Bundesliga’s worst-kept secrets. The towering centre-back has three goals and seven clean sheets for Freiburg, alongside 68 points for duels won. His side have the second-best away defensive record in the league, visiting a Köln opponent without a win in three games.
Evan Ndicka has been the heart of Frankfurt’s defence throughout a lot of this season. He has three double-digit hauls from his last six games, including 13 points in the MD20 loss to Arminia Bielefeld. Frankfurt have scored the third-most goals from set pieces, with Ndicka on two goals and two assists as a result of that, alongside picking up eight points from goal attempts in that Bielefeld game. Frankfurt visit 17th placed Stuttgart hoping to get back into their resurgent form of late 2021.
MIDFIELDERS
PATRICK WIMMER (5.8m), JUDE BELLINGHAM (13.8m), JESPER LINDSTROM (8.7m), FLORIAN WIRTZ (14.2m), JOSHUA KIMMICH (17.1m)
Patrick Wimmer is becoming something of a revelation for Arminia Bielefeld. His rabona assist against Frankfurt has been shared far and wide, and the young Austrian now has 72 points from his last five games, second only to Robert Lewandowski. Bielefeld now host a very leaky Gladbach side and Wimmer will be hoping to continue his prolific form.
Jude Bellingham has been a consistent source of points throughout this season, with an array of goals, assists and duels won leading to 31 from his last three games. The English wonderkid faces Leverkusen in a game set to be high-scoring and Bellingham can rack up points across the pitch.
With Filip Kostic and Daichi Kamada ruled out of this tie, Frankfurt’s hopes will rest on young Jesper Lindstrom’s shoulders. Gaining 72 points from his last six outings shows what Lindstrom is capable of and, ahead of a visit to 17th-placed Stuttgart, he should have plenty of opportunities to rack up points.
Florian Wirtz seems to be rediscovering his unstoppable form from the start of the season, notching 28 points from his last two matches. The German starlet faces a Dortmund defence who he got a goal and assist against on Matchday 4, with this season’s nine assists putting him second only to Thomas Müller.
Joshua Kimmich is back from his bout of Covid-19 and a 20-point haul in MD20 shows he’s bang in form. Kimmich can pick up points from anywhere, with three goals, five assists and 32 points from passes leading to a shot so far. Leipzig have recently been good but should still be no match for Nagelsmann’s Bayern side, which bodes well for Kimmich.
FORWARDS
PATRIK SCHICK (16.3m), THOMAS MULLER (19.8m), MAX KRUSE (13.2m)
When two teams who score and concede a lot of goals play each other, it’s only logical to expect a high-scoring encounter. Dortmund and Leverkusen have scored the second and third-most goals in the Bundesliga respectively, but have also both conceded more than 30 goals from 20 games, putting them in the second half of the table defensively. The reverse MD4 fixture saw Dortmund run out 4-3 winners. Patrik Schick will be hoping to take full advantage of this after a slump, by his standards, of two goals in his last four games.
Thomas Müller is the second-highest scoring player in Bundesliga Fantasy, only behind partner-in-crime Robert Lewandowski. Müller now has double-digit hauls in each of his last five games, producing six goals and 16 assists overall.
Max Kruse is back at Wolfsburg and, perhaps more importantly, back under Florian Kohfeldt, who he enjoyed success with at Werder Bremen. Now that Wout Weghorst is plying his trade at Burnley, Kruse will be the main man and his side host bottom-placed Greuther Fürth, who have conceded 52 goals from 20 games. Kruse’s last four Union appearances brought in 42 points and he will be hoping to carry that form back to the Volkswagen Arena.
