29
May
2020
This Weekend: Everything you need to know in 5 minutes

This Weekend: Everything you need to know in 5 minutes

When we checked earlier in the week and had final confirmation that so many leagues were returning to the app over the next few days, we got a little bit excited! Yes, we might still be waiting for re-starts in the Premier League, La Liga and Serie A but there’s plenty of stories out there and important games to follow – here’s our pick of the weekend’s action.

? Friday Night.

?? There’s just one headline game in the Bundesliga with Freiburg hosting Bayer Leverkusen, one of the sides who are very much in the hunt for a place in next season’s Champions League.

Leverkusen were unbeaten in 12 games going into the midweek round but a chastising 4-1 home defeat to Wolfsburg should see them looking to bounce back tonight. They sit 4th, a whopping 15 points above Freiburg in 8th.

?? Silverware is on the line in Austria! After 77 days without a competitive game in the country, they’re kickstarting a return to football with the final of the ÖFB Cup.

And it should be an interesting contest between Red Bull Salzburg and 2nd division side, Austria Lustenau. On one side you have the giants Salzburg, who’ve won the last 6 league titles in a row and 6 of the last 8 Cups to boot – on the other, you have a side who last reached the top flight in the mid-1990s. They couldn’t win it could they!?

?? There could also be a trophy won elsewhere this evening, as the SuperLiga season re-starts in Serbia.

Red Star Belgrade, or Crvena zvezda were 11 points clear at the top of the table when football stopped but as the season has now been curtailed and they will not be splitting for the traditional Championship and Relegation groups, there are instead just 4 rounds left to play.

That means that tantalisingly, they just need a point to pick up their 3rd straight title. And tonight, Red Star travel across Belgrade to relegation threatened, FK Rad to try and seal the deal.

? Saturday

?? There are five games in the Bundesliga tomorrow, with Champions-elect Bayern München featuring in the late kick-off against Fortuna Düsseldorf. After their midweek win over Borussia Dortmund in Der Klassiker, Bayern now sit 7 points clear in the table.

Don’t forget that we also have coverage for the German second tier, 2. Bundesliga and the Fraeun-Bundesliga but if it’s a real title race you’re after, you could do worse than follow the return of the 3. Liga, where action starts on Saturday.

?? The Polish Ekstraklasa is amongst a host of Eastern European leagues back in the app this weekend and there too, they have scheduled a juicy looking game between two of the country’s biggest clubs.

Lech Poznań may sit down in 5th, but they’ll be looking to slow the progress of league leaders and arch-rivals, Legia Warsaw.

? Sunday

?? Borussia Dortmund are probably the biggest side in the world playing on Sunday, but they’ll be hoping for a little less attention from the media and a routine win to ease their shattered confidence. Dortmund will be playing the Bundesliga’s bottom-side, Paderborn.

After that midweek defeat to Bayern in what was being tipped to be their best change of challenging their rivals for the title in recent years, manager Lucian Favre must be worried about his job security.

?? Staying in Germany, but dropping a level – Dynamo Dresden return to action after they were the only high profile side to have their quarantine extended following a number of the squad testing positive for coronavirus. They sit bottom, but now with a number of games in hand and on Sunday, they go up against one of the big boys gunning for promotion – Stuttgart.

?? There will be another massive Eastern European Derby in the Ukraine on Sunday where the league, already split into Championship and Relegation groups serves up the fixture between Shakhtar Donetsk and Dynamo Kyiv. Having won every title between them since 1992, this really is a case of the Big 2.

?? Lastly, two games to look out for in the K League on Sunday. FC Seoul will be hoping for less defensive mistakes and more of what’s seen them win their last two when they play Seongnam, whilst the live game that you’ll be able to watch on YouTube via our friends at Copa90, is the clash between Incheon United and Pohang Steelers.

If you want to follow any of the games mentioned above, click on the relevant link and tap the bell icon to receive all the key match updates.

Or join us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to discuss all the important football going on this weekend!

Posted by Bill Biss
22
May
2020
This Weekend: Everything you need to know in 5 minutes

This Weekend: Everything you need to know in 5 minutes

With the return of so many leagues to the app that you now actually have to scroll down the matches tab in order to see them all, we thought we’d bring back our normal guide to what games you need to watch out for over the coming days.

? Friday Night.

?? The headline game in the app today has to be the big Bundesliga derby between Hertha and Union Berlin – and what will be just their second ever meeting in the top flight.

It’s a unique rivalry this one, with the clubs divided by international border for much of the last century – Hertha in the West, Union behind the Berlin Wall in East Germany.

Before German reunification, fans of both clubs took great delight in a subversive friendship across the divide, with ‘Hertha and Union – One Nation’ being a regular chant. Now the game has more of your traditional derby feel with both sides keen to take the spoils.

If you’ve got some time on your hands, here’s the full fascinating story of the Berlin Derby, from Copa 90.

?? There are some early kick-offs in other leagues around the world today, with perhaps the most interesting game coming up in the Faroes. Early season pacesetters, NSÍ make the short trip across the island they share to visit Víkingur. And whatever the outcome, you can guarantee that the scenery will look fantastic.

? Saturday

We’ve got league and cup football from EIGHT countries coming up tomorrow. You probably don’t realise how happy that makes us… and there’s a whole lot more coming back before the end of next week as well!

?? The main event on Saturday again comes in the Bundesliga where the fixture list serves up treat after treat.

Amongst the regular kick-offs, there’s a chance to see whether Borussia Dortmund and their in-form array of young talent can keep the pressure up on rivals Bayern at the top of the table. Dortmund travel to Wolfsburg, who sit someway off the pace but still the best of the rest down in 6th.

At the same time, perhaps the two most exciting teams in the division – in terms of attacking football go head-to-head with Borussia Mönchengladbach facing off against Bayer Leverkusen. Both sides enjoyed big away wins on their return to action last weekend, Gladbach turning over Frankfurt 3-1 whilst Leverkusen went one better, beating Werder Bremen 4-1.

Later in the day, and with the advantage of knowing exactly what everybody else has already done – the league leaders, Bayern host Eintracht Frankfurt at what will be an empty Allianz Arena.

Should Bayern slip up, it will only put more importance on a certain fixture coming up next Tuesday. Yep, it’s Der Klassiker – Dortmund vs. Bayern. ?

?? There are three games in Belarus tomorrow, but perhaps the most intriguing is between 3rd and 6th, Isloch and Energetik. The away side, essentially a student side representing the biggest state university in the country can beat anyone on their day, but Isloch should prove a stern test. Should the football not live up to the billing though, there’s always Isloch’s now world famous accordion player keeping the rhythm from the stands!

? Sunday

?? South Korea’s K League has been enjoying its fair share of the footballing spotlight in recent weeks, and with good reason as one of Asia’s biggest leagues has certainly caught the imagination on its return to action.

Sunday sees current champions, Jeonbuk continue their title defence against Daegu FC. And we also have the current leaders Ulsan Hyandai against Busan IPark. Ulsan missed out on that 2019 title on goals scored but it looks like they’re determined to make up for it this year, with them scoring seven in the first two rounds!

The latter game will be available to watch free, via Copa90 for a lot of you tuning in from around the world.

?? There’s another big game in the former Soviet republic on Sunday as the Final of the Belarusian Cup is due to take place.

BATE Borisov, who lost their 13-year stranglehold on the league title to Dynamo Brest last season have a shot at revenge here. The two have actually already met this week, with the out-of-form Dynamo taking something of a pummelling. But with silverware on the line, it could all be different at the weekend.

?? The fixture list for Sunday in the 2. Bundesliga, Germany’s second division seems as good a reason as any to remind you that we carry full stats, player ratings and all the usual FotMob hallmarks you would expect for a top league.

There’s two games in particular to look forward to here. Fallen giants Hamburg, who are enduring just their second ever season outside of the Bundesliga look to shore up their claim to a promotion spot with a top of the table clash against runaway leaders Arminia Bielefeld.

At the same time another massive side, Stuttgart – themselves five time winners of Germany’s top flight travel to Holstein Kiel. Die Roten are currently level on points with Hamburg as the two duel it out for the second automatic ticket back to the big time.

If you want to follow any of the games mentioned above, click on the relevant link and tap the bell icon to receive all the key match updates.

Or join us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to discuss all the important football going on this weekend!

Posted by Bill Biss
22
May
2020
? At The Match: The Berlin Derby

? At The Match: The Berlin Derby

The Berlin Derby kicks off tonight at 20:30 Berlin time / 19:30 London time.

The Bundesliga weekend begins with a big one — as Hertha Berlin host Union Berlin for their second-ever meeting in the Bundesliga. In the reverse fixture earlier this season, Football Ramble Daily’s At The Match was in the stands in Berlin to get the story and sounds of the derby. It’s well worth a listen ahead of the match tonight.

Below is a taste of the episode:

You can listen to the full podcast below or on Apple Podcasts.

Posted by Curt Baker
16
May
2020
The Bundesliga Returns Today – your guide to the season so far

The Bundesliga Returns Today – your guide to the season so far

You’ve seen the odd glimpse of them training on their own and they’ve been annoying you with their dancing on TikTok but now, after a delay equalling nine game weeks, the players in the Bundesliga are getting back to what they know best, or at least something close to it.

Yes – finally, one of Europe’s top leagues is back in action following the work of the German authorities to counter the pandemic that has engulfed the world and wreaked havoc with the sporting calendar. 

The majority of Bundesliga 1 and 2 clubs WILL play this weekend, albeit in stadiums stripped of the usual passion and colour you’ve come to associate with German supporter culture, but at least they’re playing.

But whilst the gates will remain closed to the fans for some time to come, we like to think FotMob can help at least to fill the gap and for those watching outside Germany, provide vital information and background to the league.

THE TOP 4

Bayern München: Reigning 7 time-champions and 4 points clear at the top going in to the weekend’s opening games, you’d think it had been another typical season of dominance for the Munich giants. In fact, despite their free scoring Bayern only took over at the top of the table in Gameweek 20 and they’ve even had a change of manager. Croatian, Nico Kovač left in November, replaced by assistant Hans-Dieter Flick initially on an interim basis. Flick was later confirmed in the role and the side’s form both domestically, and in the Champions League continued to improve.

Opening Fixture: Bayern travel to Union Berlin on Sunday, for the side’s first ever top flight meeting at Union’s fan-built stadium in the forest.

Borussia Dortmund: Lucien Favre head’s up the challenge of Germany’s second biggest club, blending a squad of experienced pros such as Mats Hummels and Marco Reus with teen prodigies like Erling Haaland and Gio Reyna PLUS Jadon Sancho to produce a brilliant brand of attacking football.

Opening Fixture: THE BIG ONE! Dortmund host arch-rivals, Schalke 04 in the Revierderby. Yep, the restart of the league begins with one of Germany’s fiercest rivalries, albeit behind closed doors.

RB Leipzig: Despite being one of the most unpopular teams in the league, at least to fans of other clubs – Leipzig, seen by some as the marketing arm of energy drink giants, Red Bull are once again letting their football do the talking. They’re another team packed full of young talent, and led by a coach who, by all accounts will be the next manager to join one of the world’s elite clubs – 32-year-old Julian Nagelsmann.

Opening Fixture: Leipzig take on Freiburg, who sit 8th tomorrow afternoon.

Borussia Mönchengladbach: Die Fohlen are enjoying their best season for decades after being early season pacesetters, alongside Leipzig. Giants of the 1970s and ’80s, the current generation are giving hope to a support starved of success for so long. And they sound determined to enjoy it – despite some of the biggest clubs in Europe sniffing around star players like Alassane Pleá and Marcus Thuram.

Opening Fixture: Gladbach go to Eintracht Frankfurt in tomorrow’s late kick-off.

THE ONES TO WATCH

Robert Lewandowski: Ignore him at your peril as the Polish striker once again leads the scoring charts (he has 25 in total) and when fit – he’s banged in a goal at a rate of more that once a game.

Erling Haaland: Naturally our favourite teen sensation in world football (we’re Norwegian after all!). Despite only arriving at Dormund in January, he’s settled in pretty well – scoring a 20 minute hat-trick on his debut and going on to rattle in 9 goals in his first 8 Bundesliga games!

Timo Werner: Germany’s best striking talent is 24 now and been touted as the next big mover in the transfer market – albeit, he has rocked the biggest buyers in the league by publicly shunning Bayern in favour of a move overseas. He’s scored 21 in 25 for Leipzig so far this season.

Jadon Sancho: Leaving England to play at Dortmund, where so many young players have broken through in recent years was the best decision Sancho has ever made. Just check out his stats, via the video below. ?

Thiago: Bayern’s midfield maestro might just be enjoying his best campaign for the club, pulling the strings in the centre of the park and bossing a number of the key stats for the league – including successful dribbles.

Alphonso Davies: Perhaps Canada’s greatest young talent…ever? And with a back story that is well worth reading up on, the left-back has come to the fore as part of Bayern’s renaissance this season.

Marcus Thuram: It can be hard to step out of your father’s shadow, especially when they’re a World Cup winner, but Thuram’s first move outside of French football has seen the forward thrive, his form at Gladbach setting himself up for a future on the world stage.

Kai Havertz: Sensational in midfield for Bayer Leverkusen up until the stoppage and another young player surely on the move soon – should his current club’s Champions League ambitions not pay off.

THE BEST OF THE REST

Bayer Leverkusen currently sit in 5th, just 2 points behind a top 4 who themselves are only separated by 6 points. Leverkusen have been shaking things up this season and they’ve beaten both Bayern and Dortmund but inconsistency has cost them – losing to sides like Frankfurt and Hertha, both currently residing in the bottom half of the table.

10 points then divide Leverkusen and Schalke 04, who look to be leading the way in the race for the Bundesliga’s last slot in Europe, whenever continental competition can resume next season.

WHO TO SUPPORT?

If you haven’t already got a team in German football, it’s worth looking further than the usual suspects as there’s a lot to love about almost every club up and down the league system. For everyone else, Schalke put up a pretty strong case for supporting them on twitter this week…

Freiburg: Led by Christian Streich since 2011, the longest serving manager in the division has overseen Freiburg’s best ever start to a season in the top flight. The modest club sit 8th, continuing a run of years in which they’ve been seen as overachieving. Streich has something of a cult appeal thanks to his social conscience and riding his bike, rather than driving a high powered car to work!

Union Berlin: From the former East side of Berlin, Union are making the most of their first ever season in the top flight – with a fanbase determined to enjoy themselves. After all, they’ve earned it with over 2000 of them literally re-building the stadium 20 years ago when financial turmoil, rather on the field success was the hallmark of the club.

FC Köln: Something of a yo-yo club, but one that always finds a way to entertain and reflect their home city of Cologne, famous for it’s carnival spirit. And where else will you get 50,000 fans turning up to a pre-season concert where the club’s latest mascot (a goat) is unveiled?

WE’VE GOT YOU!

If you want to keep up with the Bundesliga, head over to the league’s profile page in the app and get your alerts set up for the re-start of the season. The title race is open, the fight for European qualification is on and there’s another battle brewing at the bottom of the table to avoid relegation.

And we’ll have all the in-game notifications, individual player ratings and live stats from every fixture that you’d expect from any of the top leagues. ?

For more of this kind of thing, make sure you give us a follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Posted by Curt Baker in Trending, World News
16
May
2020
The Bundesliga Returns Tomorrow – your guide to the season so far

The Bundesliga Returns Tomorrow – your guide to the season so far

You’ve seen the odd glimpse of them training on their own and they’ve been annoying you with their dancing on TikTok but now, after a delay equalling nine game weeks, the players in the Bundesliga are getting back to what they know best, or at least something close to it.

Yes – finally, one of Europe’s top leagues is back in action following the work of the German authorities to counter the pandemic that has engulfed the world and wreaked havoc with the sporting calendar. 

The majority of Bundesliga 1 and 2 clubs WILL play this weekend, albeit in stadiums stripped of the usual passion and colour you’ve come to associate with German supporter culture, but at least they’re playing.

But whilst the gates will remain closed to the fans for some time to come, we like to think FotMob can help at least to fill the gap and for those watching outside Germany, provide vital information and background to the league.

THE TOP 4

Bayern München: Reigning 7 time-champions and 4 points clear at the top going in to the weekend’s opening games, you’d think it had been another typical season of dominance for the Munich giants. In fact, despite their free scoring Bayern only took over at the top of the table in Gameweek 20 and they’ve even had a change of manager. Croatian, Nico Kovač left in November, replaced by assistant Hans-Dieter Flick initially on an interim basis. Flick was later confirmed in the role and the side’s form both domestically, and in the Champions League continued to improve.

Opening Fixture: Bayern travel to Union Berlin on Sunday, for the side’s first ever top flight meeting at Union’s fan-built stadium in the forest.

Borussia Dortmund: Lucien Favre head’s up the challenge of Germany’s second biggest club, blending a squad of experienced pros such as Mats Hummels and Marco Reus with teen prodigies like Erling Haaland and Gio Reyna PLUS Jadon Sancho to produce a brilliant brand of attacking football.

Opening Fixture: THE BIG ONE! Dortmund host arch-rivals, Schalke 04 in the Revierderby. Yep, the restart of the league begins with one of Germany’s fiercest rivalries, albeit behind closed doors.

RB Leipzig: Despite being one of the most unpopular teams in the league, at least to fans of other clubs – Leipzig, seen by some as the marketing arm of energy drink giants, Red Bull are once again letting their football do the talking. They’re another team packed full of young talent, and led by a coach who, by all accounts will be the next manager to join one of the world’s elite clubs – 32-year-old Julian Nagelsmann.

Opening Fixture: Leipzig take on Freiburg, who sit 8th tomorrow afternoon.

Borussia Mönchengladbach: Die Fohlen are enjoying their best season for decades after being early season pacesetters, alongside Leipzig. Giants of the 1970s and ’80s, the current generation are giving hope to a support starved of success for so long. And they sound determined to enjoy it – despite some of the biggest clubs in Europe sniffing around star players like Alassane Pleá and Marcus Thuram.

Opening Fixture: Gladbach go to Eintracht Frankfurt in tomorrow’s late kick-off.

THE ONES TO WATCH

Robert Lewandowski: Ignore him at your peril as the Polish striker once again leads the scoring charts (he has 25 in total) and when fit – he’s banged in a goal at a rate of more that once a game.

Erling Haaland: Naturally our favourite teen sensation in world football (we’re Norwegian after all!). Despite only arriving at Dormund in January, he’s settled in pretty well – scoring a 20 minute hat-trick on his debut and going on to rattle in 9 goals in his first 8 Bundesliga games!

Timo Werner: Germany’s best striking talent is 24 now and been touted as the next big mover in the transfer market – albeit, he has rocked the biggest buyers in the league by publicly shunning Bayern in favour of a move overseas. He’s scored 21 in 25 for Leipzig so far this season.

Jadon Sancho: Leaving England to play at Dortmund, where so many young players have broken through in recent years was the best decision Sancho has ever made. Just check out his stats, via the video below. ?

Thiago: Bayern’s midfield maestro might just be enjoying his best campaign for the club, pulling the strings in the centre of the park and bossing a number of the key stats for the league – including successful dribbles.

Alphonso Davies: Perhaps Canada’s greatest young talent…ever? And with a back story that is well worth reading up on, the left-back has come to the fore as part of Bayern’s renaissance this season.

Marcus Thuram: It can be hard to step out of your father’s shadow, especially when they’re a World Cup winner, but Thuram’s first move outside of French football has seen the forward thrive, his form at Gladbach setting himself up for a future on the world stage.

Kai Havertz: Sensational in midfield for Bayer Leverkusen up until the stoppage and another young player surely on the move soon – should his current club’s Champions League ambitions not pay off.

THE BEST OF THE REST

Bayer Leverkusen currently sit in 5th, just 2 points behind a top 4 who themselves are only separated by 6 points. Leverkusen have been shaking things up this season and they’ve beaten both Bayern and Dortmund but inconsistency has cost them – losing to sides like Frankfurt and Hertha, both currently residing in the bottom half of the table.

10 points then divide Leverkusen and Schalke 04, who look to be leading the way in the race for the Bundesliga’s last slot in Europe, whenever continental competition can resume next season.

WHO TO SUPPORT?

If you haven’t already got a team in German football, it’s worth looking further than the usual suspects as there’s a lot to love about almost every club up and down the league system. For everyone else, Schalke put up a pretty strong case for supporting them on twitter this week…

Freiburg: Led by Christian Streich since 2011, the longest serving manager in the division has overseen Freiburg’s best ever start to a season in the top flight. The modest club sit 8th, continuing a run of years in which they’ve been seen as overachieving. Streich has something of a cult appeal thanks to his social conscience and riding his bike, rather than driving a high powered car to work!

Union Berlin: From the former East side of Berlin, Union are making the most of their first ever season in the top flight – with a fanbase determined to enjoy themselves. After all, they’ve earned it with over 2000 of them literally re-building the stadium 20 years ago when financial turmoil, rather on the field success was the hallmark of the club.

FC Köln: Something of a yo-yo club, but one that always finds a way to entertain and reflect their home city of Cologne, famous for it’s carnival spirit. And where else will you get 50,000 fans turning up to a pre-season concert where the club’s latest mascot (a goat) is unveiled?

WE’VE GOT YOU!

If you want to keep up with the Bundesliga, head over to the league’s profile page in the app and get your alerts set up for the re-start of the season. The title race is open, the fight for European qualification is on and there’s another battle brewing at the bottom of the table to avoid relegation.

And we’ll have all the in-game notifications, individual player ratings and live stats from every fixture that you’d expect from any of the top leagues. ?

For more of this kind of thing, make sure you give us a follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Posted by Curt Baker in Trending, World News
15
May
2020
The Bundesliga Returns Tomorrow – your guide to the season so far

The Bundesliga Returns Tomorrow – your guide to the season so far

You’ve seen the odd glimpse of them training on their own and they’ve been annoying you with their dancing on TikTok but now, after a delay equalling nine game weeks, the players in the Bundesliga are getting back to what they know best, or at least something close to it.

Yes – finally, one of Europe’s top leagues is back in action following the work of the German authorities to counter the pandemic that has engulfed the world and wreaked havoc with the sporting calendar. 

The majority of Bundesliga 1 and 2 clubs WILL play this weekend, albeit in stadiums stripped of the usual passion and colour you’ve come to associate with German supporter culture, but at least they’re playing.

But whilst the gates will remain closed to the fans for some time to come, we like to think FotMob can help at least to fill the gap and for those watching outside Germany, provide vital information and background to the league.

THE TOP 4

Bayern München: Reigning 7 time-champions and 4 points clear at the top going in to the weekend’s opening games, you’d think it had been another typical season of dominance for the Munich giants. In fact, despite their free scoring Bayern only took over at the top of the table in Gameweek 20 and they’ve even had a change of manager. Croatian, Nico Kovač left in November, replaced by assistant Hans-Dieter Flick initially on an interim basis. Flick was later confirmed in the role and the side’s form both domestically, and in the Champions League continued to improve.

Opening Fixture: Bayern travel to Union Berlin on Sunday, for the side’s first ever top flight meeting at Union’s fan-built stadium in the forest.

Borussia Dortmund: Lucien Favre head’s up the challenge of Germany’s second biggest club, blending a squad of experienced pros such as Mats Hummels and Marco Reus with teen prodigies like Erling Haaland and Gio Reyna PLUS Jadon Sancho to produce a brilliant brand of attacking football.

Opening Fixture: THE BIG ONE! Dortmund host arch-rivals, Schalke 04 in the Revierderby. Yep, the restart of the league begins with one of Germany’s fiercest rivalries, albeit behind closed doors.

RB Leipzig: Despite being one of the most unpopular teams in the league, at least to fans of other clubs – Leipzig, seen by some as the marketing arm of energy drink giants, Red Bull are once again letting their football do the talking. They’re another team packed full of young talent, and led by a coach who, by all accounts will be the next manager to join one of the world’s elite clubs – 32-year-old Julian Nagelsmann.

Opening Fixture: Leipzig take on Freiburg, who sit 8th tomorrow afternoon.

Borussia Mönchengladbach: Die Fohlen are enjoying their best season for decades after being early season pacesetters, alongside Leipzig. Giants of the 1970s and ’80s, the current generation are giving hope to a support starved of success for so long. And they sound determined to enjoy it – despite some of the biggest clubs in Europe sniffing around star players like Alassane Pleá and Marcus Thuram.

Opening Fixture: Gladbach go to Eintracht Frankfurt in tomorrow’s late kick-off.

THE ONES TO WATCH

Robert Lewandowski: Ignore him at your peril as the Polish striker once again leads the scoring charts (he has 25 in total) and when fit – he’s banged in a goal at a rate of more that once a game.

Erling Haaland: Naturally our favourite teen sensation in world football (we’re Norwegian after all!). Despite only arriving at Dormund in January, he’s settled in pretty well – scoring a 20 minute hat-trick on his debut and going on to rattle in 9 goals in his first 8 Bundesliga games!

Timo Werner: Germany’s best striking talent is 24 now and been touted as the next big mover in the transfer market – albeit, he has rocked the biggest buyers in the league by publicly shunning Bayern in favour of a move overseas. He’s scored 21 in 25 for Leipzig so far this season.

Jadon Sancho: Leaving England to play at Dortmund, where so many young players have broken through in recent years was the best decision Sancho has ever made. Just check out his stats, via the video below. ?

Thiago: Bayern’s midfield maestro might just be enjoying his best campaign for the club, pulling the strings in the centre of the park and bossing a number of the key stats for the league – including successful dribbles.

Alphonso Davies: Perhaps Canada’s greatest young talent…ever? And with a back story that is well worth reading up on, the left-back has come to the fore as part of Bayern’s renaissance this season.

Marcus Thuram: It can be hard to step out of your father’s shadow, especially when they’re a World Cup winner, but Thuram’s first move outside of French football has seen the forward thrive, his form at Gladbach setting himself up for a future on the world stage.

Kai Havertz: Sensational in midfield for Bayer Leverkusen up until the stoppage and another young player surely on the move soon – should his current club’s Champions League ambitions not pay off.

THE BEST OF THE REST

Bayer Leverkusen currently sit in 5th, just 2 points behind a top 4 who themselves are only separated by 6 points. Leverkusen have been shaking things up this season and they’ve beaten both Bayern and Dortmund but inconsistency has cost them – losing to sides like Frankfurt and Hertha, both currently residing in the bottom half of the table.

10 points then divide Leverkusen and Schalke 04, who look to be leading the way in the race for the Bundesliga’s last slot in Europe, whenever continental competition can resume next season.

WHO TO SUPPORT?

If you haven’t already got a team in German football, it’s worth looking further than the usual suspects as there’s a lot to love about almost every club up and down the league system. For everyone else, Schalke put up a pretty strong case for supporting them on twitter this week…

Freiburg: Led by Christian Streich since 2011, the longest serving manager in the division has overseen Freiburg’s best ever start to a season in the top flight. The modest club sit 8th, continuing a run of years in which they’ve been seen as overachieving. Streich has something of a cult appeal thanks to his social conscience and riding his bike, rather than driving a high powered car to work!

Union Berlin: From the former East side of Berlin, Union are making the most of their first ever season in the top flight – with a fanbase determined to enjoy themselves. After all, they’ve earned it with over 2000 of them literally re-building the stadium 20 years ago when financial turmoil, rather on the field success was the hallmark of the club.

FC Köln: Something of a yo-yo club, but one that always finds a way to entertain and reflect their home city of Cologne, famous for it’s carnival spirit. And where else will you get 50,000 fans turning up to a pre-season concert where the club’s latest mascot (a goat) is unveiled?

WE’VE GOT YOU!

If you want to keep up with the Bundesliga, head over to the league’s profile page in the app and get your alerts set up for the re-start of the season. The title race is open, the fight for European qualification is on and there’s another battle brewing at the bottom of the table to avoid relegation.

And we’ll have all the in-game notifications, individual player ratings and live stats from every fixture that you’d expect from any of the top leagues. ?

For more of this kind of thing, make sure you give us a follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Posted by Bill Biss
08
May
2020
This Weekend: Everything you need to know in 5 minutes

This Weekend: Everything you need to know in 5 minutes

Every Friday since the mass suspension of football around the world back in March, we’ve been recommending alternatives to whet your appetite for the game. But this weekend, there are signs of life and with the number of active leagues swelling, that matches tab in your app is starting to look a little busier!

?? THE K LEAGUE BEGINS

Credited with one of the best responses to the Coronavirus outbreak anywhere in the world, the Korean Republic’s authorities have allowed the delayed football season to begin with a series of protocols in place to secure the health and safety of the players and club staff.

The first game in the top flight was played today and with a world wide audience keen to sample what was likely their first taste of Korean league football, Jeonbuk – the defending champions beat Suwon Bluewings thanks to a single goal from 41-year-old legend, Lee Dong-gook.

There are five further K League 1 games across the weekend – all of which will have live score and match updates in the app and we’ll also have all the action from the country’s second division, K League 2.

To help you get to know a little more about the league, we’ve also brought in news feeds from respected sources such as K League United. And on our twitter, we gave an introduction to the really important details about each team!

?? INTRODUCING THE BETRI DEILDIN

Tomorrow, we’ll be introducing another new league to the app as the Faroe Island’s Premier League gets underway. 10 teams spread across the tiny archipelago in the North Atlantic will compete this season, in what is the 78th edition of the league.

There’s been a lot of hype for this in FotMob’s native Norway, with one of the major broadcasters showing games live and we’re proud to help raise awareness of the league across the world by bringing news from the games to you in the app.

By way of introduction, we enlisted football and travel magazine, Gløry to help us explore this new frontier.

?? DON’T FORGET BELARUS!

Just because there’s another European league joining the party, it doesn’t mean that we’ll be ignoring the Belarusian Premier League, the one and only source of live football we had for a while there last month!

Surprise league leaders, FK Slutsk opened the weekend action today, but most of the attention in this round will fall on Sunday’s fixtures as the vastly improved BATE Borisov take on struggling Smolevichy and then defending champions, Dynamo Brest host fallen giants, Dinamo Minsk.

?? THE FINAL, FINAL IN NICARAGUA

With last weekend’s first leg finishing all square, it’s all to play for in tomorrow night’s 2nd leg of the Clausura play-off Final in Nicaragua.

The Primera Division’s top two, Managua and Real Estelí were separated by seven points in the regular season but apart from two goals in 5 minutes – one for each side, the opening game was a cagy affair and we’ll be hoping for more drama as the champions are decided in the Nicaraguan capital.

If you want to follow any of the games mentioned above, click on the relevant link and tap the bell icon to receive all the key match updates.

Or join us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to discuss all the important football going on this weekend!

Posted by Bill Biss
05
May
2020
Vote for the FotMob Fans’ Player of the Season for HRBFC

Vote for the FotMob Fans’ Player of the Season for HRBFC

All of us at FotMob have loved being a part of the Hampton and Richmond community this past year. We want to hear who you think was the Beavers’ standout performer this season, as the FotMob Fans’ Player of the Season.

Posted by Curt Baker
01
May
2020
This Weekend: What to Watch, Read and Follow

This Weekend: What to Watch, Read and Follow

It’s time for our weekly round-up of what football, and perhaps more importantly, what football-themed distractions you could enjoy over the next couple of days.

? WHAT TO WATCH

?? If you’re of a certain age, obsessed with football and from the UK you may be delighted to know that James Richardson, now host of the Totally Football Show podcast has rediscovered some old episodes of the seminal TV show that he presented back in the day – Gazzetta Football Italia. Just look at the line-up below – there’s some prime 90s football content right there!

? You might not think 10 minutes, 55 seconds worth of clips of various football fans from around Europe celebrating goals in the stands is worth you while, but with these being from the back catalog of Away Days, the YouTube channel hosted by friend of FotMob, Ellis Platten you might just change your mind!

?? CLAUSURA FINALS DAY IN NICARAGUA

On Saturday night, the 1st leg of the Clausura finals will take place in the only CONCACAF country still playing during these troubling times.

Fittingly, the two sides who finished first and second in Nicaragua’s regular season have made it through the showpiece final. Real Estelí host the first leg, with the return being played at Managua in mid-week.

Managua are currently unbeaten in 14 games, having led the table by seven points over Real. ?

??????? CELEBRATING 2019/20 WITH THE BEAVERS

With the season now officially over for the team we proudly sponsor in England, we thought we’d look back at a few of our highlights from the first year of our partnership with Hampton and Richmond Borough. Check out the full thread on our twitter feed.

? SOMETHING TO READ

The My Favourite Game series in UK newspaper, The Guardian is an interesting look in to the psyche of some of their best writers as they write about the best game they’ve ever seen. It’s not exclusively football, but come for Nicky Bandini’s homage to the Italy vs. Germany World Cup Semi-Final in 2006 and once you’re hooked, stay for the charm of Max Rushden’s retelling of a League 1 game between Cambridge United and Cardiff City from the 1990s!

Our friends at Glory, the magazine that’s part football, part coffee table travel bible have re-printed their first edition, a look at the game in the Faroe Isles. Well worth the investment.

?? BELARUS ROLLS ON

The season continues at pace in Belarus – and we’ve already had one Round 7 game this afternoon.

There are 3 games tomorrow including a clash between the league leaders, FK Slutsk and struggling giants, Dynamo Minsk. And on Sunday, there’s games for BATE against Neman Grodno and the reigning champions, Dinamo Brest look to get out of the relegation zone with a six-pointer against current bottom side, Belshina.

? SOMETHING TO LISTEN TO

Our favourite women’s football podcast, Two Girls Talk Balls have been dropping new content throughout the ongoing lockdown in the UK and this week’s episode asks some important questions. Listen to the clip below, and then check out the full episode here.

?? ONE WEEK UNTIL THE K LEAGUE

Thanks to South Korea’s widely regarded response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the top two leagues in the country – K Leagues 1 and 2 will be starting next weekend.

To help you prepare for the new campaign, we’ve added some English language sources to our news pages – including K League United who’ve hosted a full preview to South Korean football on their site.

If you want to follow any of the games mentioned above, click on the relevant link and tap the bell icon to receive all the key match updates.

Or join us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to discuss all the important football going on this weekend!

Posted by Bill Biss