Who makes the Opta
Bundesliga Team
of the Season for 2024-25? It’s time to find out…
Bayern
Munich won the title, overcoming last season’s winners Bayer
Leverkusen by 13 points, with
Harry Kane finally winning a major trophy. Eintracht
Frankfurt and Borussia
Dortmund will join those two in next season’s UEFA Champions
League, with this season’s surprise package SC
Freiburg finished fifth.
With the 2024-25 Bundesliga regular season over, we’ve analysed
the performances of every player and picked our team of the season
with the help of our German
football experts OptaFranz. These 11 players have been selected
after performing better than any other player in their respective
position according to the data…
Goalkeeper
Nikola Vasilj
(St.
Pauli)
St.
Pauli’s Nikola
Vasilj finishing this Bundesliga season as the top-ranked
goalkeeper probably wasn’t on a lot of people’s bingo cards after
the Hamburg side were promoted last summer. The 29-year-old didn’t
have a particularly good campaign in last year’s Bundesliga 2,
committing double the amount of errors leading to goals (6) of any
other keeper, and he had no prior top-flight experience outside of
Ukraine and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Nonetheless, the Bosnian was vital in St. Pauli avoiding
immediate relegation back to the second division for the first time
since 1995-96, when they finished 15th. Offensively, the
Kiezkicker had their fair share of struggles this season,
but at the other end of the pitch, only champions Bayern Munich
(32) conceded fewer goals than them (41). According to
expected goals on target (xGOT) conceded, Vasilj prevented 10
more goals than the average goalkeeper would have expected (48 xGOT
conceded, 38 goals conceded excluding own goals) based on the
quality of shots faced – that was a league-best figure.
Of the 136 shots on target that Vasilj faced, he saved 97 – only
four keepers made more in the Bundesliga this season. And among
those that faced at least 100 shots on target, only RB Leipzig’s
Péter Gulácsi saved a greater proportion (71.5%) than Vasilj
(71.3%).
Right-Back
Mitchell Weiser
(Werder Bremen)
For the second Bundesliga season in a row, Werder
Bremen just narrowly missed out on qualifying for European
competition for the first time since participating in the 2010-11
UEFA Champions League. Arguably their most important player was
right wing-back Mitchell
Weiser, as he accumulated the most minutes among outfielders in
the team (2,870) and provided the joint-most assists (8, level with
Marvin Ducksch).
Including those eight assists, the 31-year-old was involved in a
personal-best 13 Bundesliga goals in 2024-25. His five goals scored
is the most he’s ever managed in a league season, and he only got
more assists in 2023-24 (9).
Despite being a wing-back, Weiser had the second-most touches in
the opponent’s box (113) for Bremen after striker Ducksch (120),
while playmaker Romano Schmid (54) was the only one of his
team-mates to better his 41 chances created in open play.
His positivity on the ball was a real feature, tallying the
second-most dribbles (80) among Bremen players and ranking as high
as third in the whole division for assist-ending carries (4).
Ageing like fine wine, Weiser enjoyed the most effective
top-flight season of his career.
Central Defender
Dayot Upamecano
(Bayern Munich)
Without Dayot
Upamecano, the Bavarians allowed their opponents 8.3 shots per
game, 1.1 goals per game and suffered two defeats. In the 20
matches with him leading the backline, FCB conceded 5.8 shots per
game and only 0.9 goals.
In a possession-dominant side like Bayern, Upamecano of course
saw plenty of the ball. Of all players to get 1,000+ minutes of
action in the 2024-25 Bundesliga, only team-mates Joshua Kimmich
(124) and Kim Min-jae (110) had more touches per 90 minutes than
him (109). Similarly, the Frenchman played a total of 1,908 passes
at a success rate of 94.1%, the highest passing accuracy among all
players in the league (min. 200 passes). He also ranked second only
to Kimmich (26.7) for carries on a per-90 basis (26.3, min. 800
minutes).
But he also stood out for the defensive side of his game,
performing his duties with efficiency.
His 1.7 interceptions and 5.6 duels won per 90 were highs among
Bayern defenders (min. 600 minutes), while only Borussia Dortmund’s
Nico Schlotterbeck (3.6) won possession more often in the defensive
third on a per-90 basis than Upamecano (3.2).
The efforts of the France international ultimately helped Bayern
secure the title with the best defensive record in the
division.
Central Defender
Jonathan Tah (Bayer
Leverkusen)
Although Bayer Leverkusen failed to hit the heights of 2023-24,
both broadly speaking and in terms of their defensive solidity,
Jonathan
Tah remained a reliable centerpiece of their backline.
Out of a possible 3,060, Tah saw 2,970 minutes of action in the
2024-25 Bundesliga season, which was the most in the Leverkusen
squad. The last outfield player of Die Werkself to feature
as much in a top-flight campaign was Stefan Kießling in 2012-13
(3,018).
The 29-year-old centre-back recorded 2,295 passes, and despite
that being the outright fifth most in the league, Tah completed 93%
of them.
The only prior instance on record (since 2004-05) of a
Bundesliga player completing a higher share of 2,000+ passes in a
single season was Tah himself in 2023-24, when 95% of his 2,185
passes found a team-mate.
Linked to that, this was the fourth successive Bundesliga season
in which Tah did not commit a single error leading to a goal.
Left-Back
Maximilian
Mittelstädt (VfB Stuttgart)
Stuttgart
were always likely to struggle for consistency after losing key
players last summer. However,
Maximilian Mittelstädt remained a key part of the team and
carried his momentum from last season into 2024-25.
The left-back, underrated for much of his career, recorded seven
Bundesliga assists this term, a new personal best in his 10th
top-flight season. His six assists from open play was a team high,
with only Angelo Stiller setting up more goals in total for them in
2024-25 (8).
His persistence ensured he was a dependable outlet on his flank.
Mittelstädt’s 148 open-play crosses was at least 32 more than any
other Bundesliga player, with 40 of them finding a team-mate. From
the seven players to record at least 100 open-play crosses,
Mittelstädt had the joint-highest accuracy (27%).
This contributed to him creating 42 chances in open play, more
than any other defender and placing himself inside the top 10
overall for this category.
But he also worked diligently off the ball, winning a greater
share of his duels (66%) than any other outfielder (min. 2,000
minutes) and ranking top for successful tackles (54).
It may not have been an exceptional season for Stuttgart, but
Mittelstädt can be delighted with his personal contributions.
Defensive Midfielder
Joshua Kimmich
(Bayern Munich)
Joshua
Kimmich was once again the pivotal point of Bayern’s game this
season, involved in more open-play shot-ending sequences than any
other player (259) in the division and having by far the most
touches (3,933 – 816 more than Granit Xhaka). The latter is a new
record for a single Bundesliga campaign since detailed data
collection began (2004-05).
Add to that the fact he ranked top for the most passes (3,425),
successful passes (3,183) and passes into the final third (536) in
this Bundesliga season – in short, he was a distribution machine
for Bayern.
But it wasn’t just a case of tallying endless short passes. He
ended the season with an expected
assists (xA) figure of 10.5, bettered only by his team-mate
Michael Olise (12.5), evidence of his creativity. The fact Kimmich
‘only’ had six assists is therefore more down to his team-mates’
finishing than his passing; after all, he also ranked second behind
Olise (91) for chances created (83).
And on top of all of that, Kimmich won possession 190 times, a
figure only two players in the whole division can better. He really
was at the centre of almost everything for Bayern in 2024-25.
Attacking Midfield****er
Vincenzo
Grifo (Freiberg)
This season’s surprise package, Freiburg, finished 2024-25 in
fifth place, only falling short of Champions League qualification
by virtue of defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt – who did qualify as a
result – on the final matchday.
Despite that pang of disappointment, it was still a brilliant
campaign for them, and winger Vincenzo
Grifo was once again a shining light, contributing eight goals
and 11 assists.
Grifo’s 11 assists was a new personal best and the most by any
Freiburg player in a single season since at least 2004-05,
bettering the 10 he provided in 2020-21.
He assisted 22% of Freiburg’s 49 Bundesliga goals this season,
the greatest proportion of any player relative to their team in the
whole division. The set-piece specialist assisted four goals from
dead-ball situations, the third-most in 2024-25 after Maximilian
Arnold and Olise (5 each).
Additionally, the veteran created 2.4 chances per 90 minutes to
rank fourth (min. 2,000 minutes) in 2024-25 behind Álex Grimaldo
(2.5), Kimmich (2.6) and Olise (3.5). Grifo created a total of 16
big chances, a feat only surpassed by Ducksch, Wirtz (17 each) and
Olise (32).
Attacking Midfield****er
Florian Wirtz
(Bayer Leverkusen)
Florian
Wirtz seamlessly continued his great performances from
Leverkusen’s glorious 2023-24 season into the 2024-25 campaign.
He assisted 12 goals this term, a new personal best and just one
short of equalling the club record for a single Bundesliga season
(since 2004-05). It was also only bettered by Bayern’s Olise (15),
however all 12 of Wirtz’s were from open play, a tally no one could
better.
Above all, his interaction and synergy with top-scorer Patrik
Schick stood out, assisting a third (7/21) of the Czech’s
Bundesliga goals this season – no other player set up a team-mate
as often in the German top flight in 2024-25.
He wasn’t just setting goals up, though. He scored his fair
share, too.
It was the second successive season in which Wirtz reached
double figures for goals (10) and assists (12); since
2004-05, Thomas Müller (5) is the only other German to manage this
in more than one Bundesliga season.
Whether he can extend that to three consecutive campaigns will
depend on whether he’s still in the Bundesliga. At the very least,
everything points to a Leverkusen farewell in the coming
months.
Attacking Midfield****er
Michael Olise
(Bayern Munich)
Bayern’s return as top dog in Germany owes much to the arrival
of Olise,
who enjoyed a stellar debut campaign.
In fact, he became only the second player since at least 2004-05
to tally 12 or more goals (12) and assists (15) in his
debut Bundesliga season after Diego for Werder Bremen (13 goals, 13
assists) in 2006-07.
That also ensured Olise ranked second behind only team-mate
Harry Kane (34) for goal involvements (27) in the 2024-25
Bundesliga season, with the France international’s 15 assists
unmatched by anyone else. Indeed, no Bayern newcomer since at least
2004-05 has ever recorded as many assists in his first Bundesliga
campaign.
He might’ve had even more if his team-mates were a little more
clinical, as he laid on 32 big chances this term, nearly double
that of any other player (two on 17). That was also a record for
this metric since 2004-05, with Olise surpassing the 31 recorded by
Müller in 2019-20.
Olise was just generally the Bundesliga’s most efficient
creator, laying on 91 chances for colleagues.
Suffice to say, he was worth the investment.
Striker
Harry Kane (Bayern
Munich)
Kane
enjoyed another fantastic season in 2024-25. The England
international became the first player in Bundesliga history to
finish each of his first two campaigns in the competition as top
scorer, netting 26 this time around, at least five more than anyone
else. Add to that his eight assists, and his 34 goal involvements
was seven clear of every other player in the German top flight.
Kane scored a lupenreiner hat-trick – a “perfect”
hat-trick, which in Germany comprises three uninterrupted,
consecutive goals within one half – against Stuttgart on MD 7 and
then against Augsburg on MD 11. That made him the first Bayern
player since Manni Burgsmüller in 1980-81 to score two
lupenreiner hat-tricks in a single Bundesliga season and
only the second since Gerd Müller (two each in 1969-70 and
1971-72).
Nine of his goals were from the penalty spot, with only Paul
Breitner (10, 1980-81) scoring more penalties in a Bundesliga
season. However, Kane also netted three times from outside the box,
more than anyone else this term.
His six goals in the final 15 minutes of games was also not
bettered in the league, and this contributed to the fact that he
notched a league-high 10 match-winning goals.
Kane moved to Germany in the hope of finally ending his trophy
drought; fittingly, he played an instrumental role in doing just
that.
Striker
Serhou Guirassy
(Borussia Dortmund)
Following his 28-goal season for Stuttgart in 2023-24, Serhou
Guirassy impressed again this term, scoring 21 times in his
debut Bundesliga campaign for Borussia Dortmund.
Guirassy finished the season as the joint-second top scorer
after Kane (26, Schick also 21). Excluding penalties, only Schick
netted more (20) than the Guinean (18), with Guirassy himself
recording the most goals from open play (17).
A huge part of his success this season was his ability to find
threatening positions, with his non-penalty shots worth a
league-high 19.8 xG. At 0.23 xG per non-penalty shot, he also
recorded the highest average shot quality in the Bundesliga this
season (min. 30 shots).
His aerial threat played a part as well. Five of his 17 headed
shots (excl. blocks) found the back of the net; no other player
with more than 10 headed shots (ex. blocks) managed a greater
conversion rate than Guirassy (29%), while only Tim Kleindienst and
Schick netted more headers in total (6 each).
Guirassy was especially fruitful in the second half of the
season, scoring a league-best 14 goals. As such, he played a
pivotal role in BVB’s late surge for Champions League qualification
as they became only the second Bundesliga team in the three-points
era to make up 10 points to fourth place in the second half of a
season (after Bayer Leverkusen in 2018-19).
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