The 2021-222 Bundesliga season had a predictable feel to it as Bayern Munich won their 10th title in a row, while Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig again lagged far behind.
However, the just-concluded season did provide its fair share of surprises as some players had unexpectedly excellent seasons, while a few disappointed amid high expectations.
Read on below as SBOTOP lists down the biggest surprises and busts of the past Bundesliga season.
Surprise: Christopher Nkunku, RB Leipzig
Christopher Nkunku’s talent has never been in doubt, but few could have foreseen a breakout season of this magnitude from the RB Leipzig star. Nkunku finished tied for fourth in the goalscoring charts with 20 goals – he had scored just 11 in his first two Bundesliga campaigns combined – and also added 13 assists with plenty of other Bundesliga 2022 highlights. With his surprising season, Nkunku has unsurprisingly caught the attention of Europe’s top clubs and could very well be getting a big-money move this summer.
Bust: Dani Olmo, RB Leipzig
While Nkunku was busy lighting up the Bundesliga this season, his Leipzig team-mate, Dani Olmo, had quite a disappointing campaign. The young Spanish midfielder’s star was undoubtedly on the rise with his great performance in Euro 2020. But his long summer saw him miss the start of the season due to injury, and he never discovered his best form as he finished with just goals and three assists in 26 appearances. But Olmo is nevertheless a terrific talent and he will look to bounce back next season with the Red Bulls.
Surprise: Patrik Schick, Bayer Leverkusen
Speaking of Euro 2020 stars, Patrik Schick had a terrific tournament as he scored five goals and just missed out on the Golden Boot. And the Czech striker successfully carried his fine form over to this Bundesliga campaign as he scored 24 goals, the same number of league goals he’d scored since his big move to Roma back in 2017. Schick finished second in the Bundesliga goal charts behind only Robert Lewandowski and helped Leverkusen to a surprise third-place finish – their highest finish in six years.
Bust: Marcus Thuram, Borussia Monchengladbach
Thuram looked set for big things after impressing in his first two Bundesliga seasons with Borussia Monchengladbach. But the French international forward turned out to be a massive flop this season in large part due to a knee injury. He finished with just three goals in 21 appearances, only nine of which were starts. But despite his disappointing campaign, the talented Thuram will likely be in high demand in the summer with Gladbach likely to sell him on as he enters the final year of his contract.
Surprise: Nico Schlotterbeck, SC Freiburg
Freiburg were one of the Bundesliga’s most surprising teams this season, and Nico Schlotterbeck was a big reason for their success. The young centre-back was consistently brilliant as he helped marshal a defence that had been one of the best in the league for most of the year. Schlotterbeck’s sudden rise has already earned him a Germany call-up and a move to Borussia Dortmund, so it shouldn’t be a surprise if he makes the German World Cup squad later this year.
Bust: Emre Can, Borussia Dortmund
As shown by their signings of Schlotterbeck and Niklas Sule, Dortmund are desperate to upgrade their defence, which was once again disastrous and has prevented them from competing for the title. Just about all of their defensive players disappointed to some degree this season, but Emre Can might be the most disappointing one of them all. Can split time between playing as a centre-back in a back three and in midfield, and he did not look particularly impressive in either role. Despite being just 28 years of age, he has hardly shown the promise that he flashed in his earlier years with Bayern and Liverpool, to Dortmund’s detriment.
Surprise: Anthony Modeste, FC Koln
After scoring 40 goals in 68 games in his first stint at Koln back in 2015-17, Modeste’s best years appeared to be behind him. But the 34-year-old unexpectedly turned back the clock with another surprising season this year as he scored 20 goals, tied for fourth in the league. The French forward’s goals helped Koln defy the Bundesliga 2022 odds as they finished seventh to qualify for the Europa Conference League.
Bust: Dayot Upamecano, Bayern Munich
Upamecano was Bayern Munich’s big offseason signing, and with his familiarity playing under Julian Nagelsmann at Leipzig, he was expected to fit in seamlessly into Bayern’s system. But that was not the case as Upamecano had an underwhelming season that was a far cry from his outstanding performances in Leipzig. The pressure will now be on Upamecano to improve from his disappointing debut campaign next season.
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