Last match day we were treated to 31 goals, but where Match Day 27 lacked in quantity it made up for in quality. We saw stunning long range strikes, solo runs, one-twos and of course Kumbela’s bicycle kick. Find out below who impressed on Match Day 27.

GOALKEEPER
Ralf Fährmann (Schalke):The 25 year old, who has been a backup keeper for the majority of his career, has found himself in the best form of his life. Previous to this game against Dortmund he had made seven clean sheets in fourteen Bundesliga appearances, which helped Schalke climb back up into the top four. This round would see him play one of his best matches, with Dortmund’s attacking threat persistently testing his goal. A fingertip save down in his bottom right hand corner denied Reus early on, and then he stopped him again with a great low save. It proved to be the Fährmann v Reus show until Lewandowski decided to get in on the game. The Schalke keeper had to be quick off his line after Lewandowski broke through the tight Schalke defence. The Polish international tried to quickly round him but Fährmann slid in and cleanly got the ball. It proved to be another fantastic display by the German keeper who’ll be knocking on Löw’s door in no time if he keeps up this form.

DEFENDERS
Mats Hummels (Dortmund):It proved to be yet another game where both Sokratis and Hummels put in a great shift to deny the opposition. In this case it was a very in-form Schalke who were denied any clear-cut chances throughout the game. Hummels made 14 defensive actions to limit Schalke to just 4 shots on target in another heated Revierderby. This season Dortmund have picked up an average of 2.31 points per game that he has played in and since returning from injury they have only dropped five points.

Niklas Stark (Nürnberg):Had a solid game in defence against Stuttgart. Stark and Pogatetz defended astutely making a combined 21 clearances. Stark however made 5 tackles and 3 inceptions as he forced Stuttgart to take shots from range. As a result, 77% of Stuttgart’s shots were outside of the box with only 5 on target. Nürnberg will need more big defensive performances like this if they want to maintain their top flight status.

Ricardo Rodríguez (Wolfsburg):It only took two minutes for the dead ball specialist to make an impact. He delivered an inswinging corner that was well met by a header from Malanda to make it 1-0. Later after receiving a lofted pass from Perisic the fullback chested it forward with his first touch to line up a ferocious drive from long range. The shot forced Wolf into a save as the keeper had to parry it wide for a corner. Throughout the game he made 13 crosses, 3 interceptions and 2 tackles to cap off his early assist.

MIDFIELDERS
Sebastian Rudy (Hoffenheim):While the forward men for Hoffenheim constantly offer options with their movement, Rudy is able to sit back and pick out a pass. He had a short pass success rate of 95% with 100% success for his long ranged passes. In addition, he timed his forward runs well and had a few long shots that tested Zieler. However it wasn’t until the 93rd minute that he was rewarded for his performances as he capatilised on a Hannover error. Zieler’s shocking kick up the field was well intercepted by Elyounoussi, who quickly laid it off to Rudy. The midfielder then took a first time shot from range to catch out the scrambling Hannover keeper to score his first goal of the season.

Maximilian Arnold (Wolfsburg):Well we all know this guy can hit a long range shot, but the one he scored in the 80th minute was a beauty. Earlier on in the game he setup Perisic for Wolfsburg’s second, but his top corner strike ten minutes from full time put the icing on the cake. The youngster has performed remarkably after stepping into the Wolfsburg first team this season and now has 7 goals to his name, with the majority coming from his preferred central attacking role.

Heung-Min Son (Leverkusen):The South Korean’s directness and willingness to take players on was key in this fixture against Augsburg. It was end-to-end stuff as both teams really went for it. Son was rewarded in the 80th minute as he played a one-two with Brandt and smashed in a low left footed shot past Hitz to make it 2-1. While he has been inconsistent in his first season at Leverkusen, there is no doubt that his ability to use both feet with ease is a real bonus for die Werkself.

Mario Götze (Bayern):After being benched in the last game Götze returned to action with a great performance during this midweek game against Hertha BSC. He had a chance after Bayern’s first goal but ran out of space at the byline and Thomas Kraft easily blocked his shot. However, in the 14th minute he of all people scored a header after Schweinsteiger floated a cross into the box. Not long later he cut the ball back for Müller but the forward’s attempt hit the crossbar. To put the game to rest in the 79th minute Götze picked up on pass, flicked it over a Hertha player, hurdled a challenged to set up Ribéry and make it 3-1. A solid game from the 21-year-old German who adds another Bundesliga title to his trophy cabinet as Bayern lift ‘the salad bowl’ with 7 games to go.

STRIKERS
Domi Kumbela (Braunschweig):Kumbela led his team to their 5th win of the season as they beat highflying Mainz. He got off to a flying start by sealing a close range header in the 18th minute as Reichel nodded it on. After the score was 2-1 in the second half Kumbela put the result beyond doubt by scoring a great bicycle kick from an Elabdellaoui cross. As the clubs top scorer he has now contributed 33% of Braunschweig’s goals. Captain fantastic.

Josip Drmic (Nürnberg):He did it again. Josip Drmic has been fantastic this season for Nürnberg and scored a brace against struggling Stuttgart. Without him they would be in an even worse position than they find themselves. He has scored or setup 56% of Nürnberg’s goals this season. Just as a note Nürnberg’s top scorer last season was centre back Per Nilsson with 6 goals, Drmic already has 15 this season with 7 games to go. What an incredible debut season for the young forward.

Pierre-Michel Lasogga (Hamburg):Just like Calhanoglu a few weeks before him, Lasogga took this game by the scruff of the neck and did everything in his power to try and claim all three points. He had 10 shots in the game, but had to wait until the 55th minute to make it on the scoresheet. His left footed curling shot made it his 12th goal of the season. If Slomka can get more players looking this determined then they have every chance to stay up. 

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About the author
Ryan Galbraith
Having Scottish parents and relatives, Ryan grew up as a football fan and a lifelong Glasgow Rangers supporter. He only started supporting Borussia Dortmund in 2009 after watching them on ONEHD. The free-to-air TV channel was originally set up to be a HD sports service, showing one Bundesliga game per week. The very first match was scheduled to be Nürnberg v Schalke, but was replaced by Dortmund v Köln, and the rest is history. Ryan is an advocator of youth development and stable financial models in football.