Enjoy Hoffenheim’s brilliant attack while it lasts

Hoffenheim blew away Schalkeon matchday 30, scoring five goals in yet another stellar attacking performance.

With 65 goals in this Bundesliga campaign, Hoffenheim sit behind only Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund in offensive output. In Ishak Belfodil and Andrej Kramaric, they have two strikers with at least 15 goals, as Kramaric scored two and Belfodil added a brace to make it an astounding seven goals in three games for the Algerian.

It may be hard to believe, but for the first half-hour, Schalke were putting together one of their better performances of the season in front of their home crowd. They snapped into tackles, kept possession, avoided the sloppy mistakes that have plagued them this season and even started carving out their own chances.

Unfortunately, they ran into one of Europe’s most exciting teams. Hoffenheim, who are undefeated in their last five games and just three points away from a top-four finish, made a statement with Belfodil’s blinding strike at the near post in the 25th minute. From then on, Julian Nagelsmann’s men never looked back.

This summer, Nagelsmann will make his way to third-place RB Leipzig, and they could be poised to compete for a Bundesliga title with a coach who has allowed so many players on Hoffenheim to blossom. And with Nico Schulz reportedly ready to be Borussia Dortmund’s next left-back, Hoffenheim could lose several of their highly impressive attacking players, including Belfodil.

All of that is speculation, however. Hoffenheim fans and fans of great soccer in general have four more games to enjoy. Kramaric, Belfodil, Kerem Demirbay, Nadiem Amiri and even backup Reiss Nelson (who has seven goals) are on top form. The fact Hoffenheim are capable of scoring five goals without players like Schulz and Joelinton in the lineup due to injury is a testament to how loaded this team is.

It wouldn’t be a surprise to see them claim the fourth spot in the Bundesliga before the year ends and carry that momentum into a strong 2019-2020 campaign domestically and internationally.

Schalke: An issue of talent, not effort

Guido Burgstaller is a player who epitomizes Schalke right now: hard-working and determined, but simply not good enough.

Schalke are 15th, six points above Stuttgart, who are in the relegation zone. This season has undoubtedly been a disappointment, but looking at the players that were assembled, should it really have been that disappointing? Or were they expected to fail?

Salif Sane has been the lone glimmer of hope on a patchwork defense that makes mistakes or features players, like loaned veteran Jeffrey Bruma, who simply aren’t good enough. In the attack, it’s been Breel Embolo and nobody else, and he only joined the mix a few weeks ago. Ahmed Kutucu has potential, but the youth product is a true rookie and wasn’t even expected to be a part of the squad until Burgstaller’s mid-season injury.

Veteran full-back Daniel Caliguiri can create chances, even if his final ball should make him more of a tertiary provider than a primary one. Suat Serdar and Weston McKennie can be effective midfielders, but where are the holding midfielders? Benjamin Stambouli and Omar Mascarell simply aren’t good enough.

Schalke also have an issue with playing those who flash. Amine Harit, one of the Bundesliga’s best dribblers, has been injured but has also mostly been a bench player when healthy. Against Hoffenheim, he drew two yellow cards in 10 minutes of action. He could be a real spark for this team.

Embolo and Sane are the only standouts for Schalke. McKennie, Harit, Serdar, Nubel and Kutucu can be considered building blocks for the future. Caliguiri is a leader who’s a positive on offense and defense. Everyone else should be deemed expendable.

Mainz’s attack continues to shine

Mainz couldn’t secure a point last week against Borussia Dortmund, but they took all three in a commanding display against Fortuna Düsseldorf. Jean Philippe-Mateta scored seconds into the match and added another. He, Karim Onisiwo, and Jean-Paul Boetius have been clicking lately, and they’ll be able to get some more positive momentum in a cakewalk matchup against Hannover next week before being tested by the Bundesliga’s best defense on matchday 32 against Leipzig.

Augsburg are on fire

Augsburg’s 6-0 win over Stuttgart has to be seen to be believed, as Martin Schmidt’s squad had the perfect encore to a 3-1 win over Europa League semifinalists Eintracht Frankfurt. Next week, they could have quite the performance against Bayer Leverkusen’s subpar defense, and that could be a high-scoring classic. Marco Richter will, once again, be a man to watch.

Lewandowski must be better, defense remains strong

Bayern Munich barely squeaked out a 1-0 win over Werder Bremen, as Robert Lewandowski, Leon Goretzka and others missed several golden chances. Lewandowski’s performance was not unlike his display against Freiburg three weeks ago, and Bayern need their star strike to be more clinical. Regardless, Bayern’s defense and midfield easily dominated against a strong Bremen side that boasted Max Kruse and Milo Rashica, the only player who seemed to threaten Bayern in the least bit, on top form.

Just imagine how scary this defense will be with Lucas Hernandez, Benjamin Pavard and maybe one more summer addition. Of course Thiago is a huge part of their success and was the best player on the pitch in this one. If he leaves to Manchester City, he’ll be sorely missed.