Borussia Dortmund faces its first real test of the still young Bundesliga season on Saturday afternoon. Julian Brandt would like to build on his performance in Mainz – also in terms of his personal record.
BVB has had a remarkable Bundesliga season so far and, after five match days, is Bayern’s closest rival, just two points behind. In their first real test against RB Leipzig on Saturday afternoon, the Westphalians want to extend their unbeaten run and, if possible, secure their fifth victory.
Julian Brandt could once again play a central role in this endeavor, having found his form at the start of the season after a slump last season. After his “fantastic goal” (in the words of Niko Kovac) in the 3-3 draw in Hamburg on the first matchday, he followed up with his best performance to date in Mainz.
“Jule is doing a great job,” his coach praised him explicitly: “I know exactly what he can do, he is an important player for us and this club.” The bare figures also show that he has made his mark in Dortmund. The two assists for Daniel Svensson and Karim Adeyemi were numbers 50 and 51 in a BVB jersey in the Bundesliga (in 193 appearances).
Will Ricken soon have to “tremble”?
This puts the 29-year-old on a par with BVB icon Stephane Chapuisat, who also made 51 assists in 218 Bundesliga games for the Black and Yellows.
Brandt could realistically overtake two other prolific assist providers this season: Jadon Sancho and Lars Ricken. Sancho, who was the subject of speculation about a second return to Signal Iduna Park last summer, has racked up a total of 55 assists for Dortmund in the Bundesliga (in just 118 games).
Ricken, now sporting director at Dortmund, has 56 assists in 302 games. Unsurprisingly, Marco Reus tops the rankings with 95 assists in 294 Bundesliga appearances, just ahead of Andreas Möller (73 in 228).
Soon in the Bundesliga top 5?
But what does the overall comparison in the Bundesliga look like – assists have been statistically recorded since the 1988/89 season? Brandt currently stands at 92 assists in 358 games and is in seventh place. This season, he is likely to overtake Mehmet Scholl (93) and Zé Roberto (94), who are just ahead of him, and break into the top 5.
Thomas Müller (215) seems uncatchable, but Franck Ribery (121), Reus (119), and Möller (109) could be long-term goals for Brandt.
