a great deal of faith in a squad which is the youngest ever to win the German league. Their centre back partnership, the uncompromising Matt Hummels and the Serb Neven Subotic, has been rock-solid all season despite the relative inexperience of its two components. Sven Bender (it’s a good job he doesn’t play in England) has held the fort well in defensive midfield alongside their captain fantastic, the soon-to-be Madridista Nuri Sahin. Advancing further up the field, their Japanese attacking midfielder Shinji Kagawa was in the form of his life before suffering a dreaded metatarsal injury in the January Asian Cup. He had scored 8 goals in 17 league appearances and was being linked with a move to United a month earlier. The most startling thing about these five players, though, is that they are all only 22 years of age.
Any die-hard Dortmund fans will be aware of a certain youngster I have not yet mentioned. Those that don’t follow German football I urge to note down the name of a future star of world football: Mario Götze. The jewel in the Dortmund crown and a product of their youth academy, Götze has been simply fantastic in his breakthrough season. After Kagawa’s injury, the 18 year old really came into his own and his Bundesliga record currently stands at 6 goals and 11 assists in 28 appearances. To put that tally into perspective, Gareth Bale, recent recipient of the PFA Award, has scored 7 and made just 3 in 30 league games, while only 4 Premier League midfielders have directly assisted as many goals as the BVB man this year. Wenger is said to be keeping a close eye on him, while his club have insisted that he is their one player not for sale at any price. It is hard to tell whether or not these are negotiating tactics, but Götze will undoubtedly move before long.
Deutschland... schönes Land, schwierige Rechtschreibung (für Ausländer)