By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Bundesliga return this weekend after the international break, and a week in which Julian Nagelsmann registered a win and a draw in his first two games in charge of Germany’s national team.
Not only is the Bundesliga title race heating up as we head into Matchday 8, the battle for the Torjägerkanone – or top scorer’s trophy – is starting to take shape too.
This weekend pits two of the division’s leading marksmen against each other in Jonas Wind and Victor Boniface, who will lead the line for VfL Wolfsburg and Bayer 04 Leverkusen respectively at the Volkswagen Arena on Saturday afternoon.
Against 1. FC Köln last time out, Boniface netted his seventh Bundesliga goal of the season. That strike drew him level with Wind, who has netted 70% of his side’s goals amongst the German elite this term.
The Dane has scored in all three of the Wolves’ home games thus far, and another effort could help his side recover from the 3-1 defeat to VfB Stuttgart last time out. They will have their work cut out against Leverkusen, though, who are currently enjoying their best-ever start to a season and sit top of the table.
Stuttgart, meanwhile, are hot on their tails and are also enjoying a record-breaking opening few weeks. The triumph over Wolfsburg was their fifth consecutive league victory and was made possible by the in-form Serhou Guirassy, who bagged a hat-trick to take his Bundesliga season tally to 13. Not only is that five more than his closest competitor, but it is also the most any player has managed at this point of a top-flight campaign.
Die Schwaben make the trip to 1. FC Union Berlin at a time when the capital club are struggling to match the performances that saw them qualify for the UEFA Champions League. Urs Fischer’s team are currently enduring a seven-game losing run in all competitions, the latest setback coming in the form of a 4-2 defeat against Borussia Dortmund.
Harry Kane is currently second in the scoring charts with eight goals, and he will be eager to add to his haul as FC Bayern München travel to 1. FSV Mainz 05 on Saturday evening. The England captain was not on the scoresheet in the 3-0 triumph over SC Freiburg before the international break, but a clash against the 17th-placed and thus far winless 05ers offers a fantastic opportunity to get back to scoring ways and help Bayern keep the pressure on Leverkusen and Stuttgart.
Fellow high-flyers Borussia Dortmund meet SV Werder Bremen on Friday night. The threepoint haul against Union maintained their unbeaten start to the league season and means they are now unbeaten in their last 15 Bundesliga games. Niclas Füllkrug was among the scorers, and he will likely line up against Bremen for the first time since his summer departure. The visitors lost 3-2 to TSG Hoffenheim in their last outing, but they did come out on top at this ground last term in the most dramatic fashion.
In what looks set to be a fascinating Rhein derby, Köln face Borussia Mönchengladbach. Things have not been easy recently for Steffen Baumgart’s Billy Goats, who sit bottom of the table with just one point to their name, although the fact only a late Joe Scally equaliser enabled the Foals to clinch a 2-2 draw away at Mainz will give the hosts hope.
Travelling to SV Darmstadt 98 on Saturday, RB Leipzig will be looking to bounce back from the disappointing goalless draw against VfL Bochum 1848. That may well be easier said than done, though, considering their opponents have won each of their last two matches, including a 2-1 victory over FC Augsburg in their previous fixture.
Die Roten Bullen sit a point behind Hoffenheim, who host Eintracht Frankfurt. The Sinsheimers’ strong start has them in the Bundesliga’s top five places, although Frankfurt, who have lost just once themselves this term and got the better of 1. FC Heidenheim 1846 on Matchday 7 by a 2-0 scoreline, will be no pushovers.
Meanwhile, Freiburg return to action against Bochum. Christian Streich’s men were never close to overcoming Bayern last time out, but they will be looking forward to the visit of Thomas Letsch’s winless side as they aim to immediately recover.
Finally, Heidenheim host Augsburg on Sunday evening. Despite only being promoted to the top tier for the first time ever recently, Frank Schmidt’s squad have adapted well to life in the Bundesliga, picking up seven points from as many games. Coming up against the longest-serving coach in the history of professional football in Germany is the Bundesliga’s newest as Jess Thorup takes the Augsburg helm following the dismissal of Enrico Maaßen.