Bundesliga Matchday 19: Team of the week

Goalkeeper

After a set of two matches with narrow last-minute victories, Bayer Leverkusen finally dropped points and this was all thanks to Moritz Nicolas. Nine saves and an expected goals (xG) against of 2.64 means he kept a free-scoring Leverkusen side to a 0-0 draw on match day 19.

Defenders

An experienced player and a leader figure in the dressing room, twenty-seven-year-old Nico Elvedi was solid in defence against a dangerous Bayer Leverkusen side. An eighty-five percent pass success rate and the composure to stop Bayer Leverkusen from scoring for the first time this Bundesliga season means he is a must-have in the team this week.

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Someone who also had a superb game was Marvin Friedrich (Elvedi's defensive partner), and with two tackles and an aerial duel won he managed to nullify Leverkusen's attack and in order to fit him in this squad we have put him at right-back as he can play that position.

In a similar vein, Niklas Stark gets into the team of the week yet again thanks to a superb performance in keeping a dangerous Freiburg side to just one goal and to his credit, he was also featured in Kicker's Elf des Tages.

Heading over to Müngersdorf, 1. FC Köln's Max Finkgräfe was excellent last weekend once again and produced a man-of-the-match performance against VfL Wolfsburg including a goal-saving tackle in the second half.

Midfielders

For VfB Stuttgart, Enzo Millot has been the heartbeat of a well-oiled midfield this season. With two tackles and two shots (including a goal from a converted penalty), he kept a Leipzig midfield which included Dani Olmo quiet.

Also having a superb game, former Bayern Munich player (now at Borussia Dortmund) Marcel Sabitzer provided an assist along with a shot against VfL Bochum.

Attackers

To begin the attack, 1. FC Köln's Faride Alidou scored a nicely-placed header against VfL Wolfsburg to open the scoring. With precise dribbling and neat build-up play, Alidou has turned around his fortunes at the club of the "Cathedral city".

Chris Führich continues the theme of 1. FC Köln players (having played there in 2019), and with an assist and an eighty-eight percent pass success rate he completes the set of wingers for this squad.

Heading to the strikers, (with hat-tricks each) both Deniz Undav and Niklas Füllkrug definitely deserve spots in this team with the latter becoming one of only eight players to score hat-tricks for three different clubs (Werder Bremen, Borussia Dortmund and Hannover 96)

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Full XI