Five new transfers in the Bundesliga to watch out for

With the transfer market now operating in full swing, there have been several big-money and big-name signings who have signed up with several clubs in Germany. But, there are a select few who will definitely catch the eye more than the rest.

Here are – in this author’s opinion – the five players who have swapped clubs this summer to keep an eye out for this Bundesliga season.

5.) Adam Szalai (Schalke 04 and Hungary)

A gimmick amongst Bundesliga fans is that Schalke can only win the league if they lift the trophy on the PlayStation. Adam Szalai may be the man to correct that. Finishing a very respectable fourth last season, the arrival of the Hungary international ensures that the goalscoring burden for the Gelsenkirchen outfit is does not rest solely on the shoulders of Netherlands striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar.

In time, Szalai could also replace the Hunter at the Veltins Arena. The Dutchman is 30 and his best years likely to soon be behind him, while 25-year-old Szalai (pronounced ‘Sorloi’) can effortlessly slot in to the role of primary striker. He comes off the back of three very successful seasons with Mainz, having scored 15 goals for them last season.

With Schalke competing in the Champions League this season, they will need added firepower up front and Szalai could be the man to give them just that.

4.) Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Borussia Dortmund and Gabon)

Having already hit the ground running during his maiden Bundesliga campaign, Aubameyang is sure to feature on the back pages of sports papers throughout the season.

Shortlisted for the Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year Award last season, last campaign’s Coupe de la Ligue winner with Saint-Etienne has already won his first piece of silverware at the Signal Iduna Park, having featured in Jurgen Klopp’s side in their DFL Super Cup clash with Bayern Munich.

Although he didn’t score in that game, Aubameyang turned heads on his Bundesliga debut when he plundered a hat trick against Augsburg in a 4-0 demolition on opening day. An astute piece of business by manager Klopp, Aubameyang will add to the Dortmund attack, ensuring that Lewandowski is not solely handed the responsibility of spearheading the yellow-blacks’ attack.

The Gabonais is only 24 and with Poland international Lewandowski rumoured to leave for Bayern Munich next summer, there is always the possibility that he cannot reproduce the same form he did last season (given his apparent desire to move elsewhere) and Aubameyang could be the man to replace him.

3.) Heung-Min Son (Bayer 04 Leverkusen and South Korea)

A lethal finisher for Hamburg last season, Son scored a career-best 12 goals last season, but that was not enough for the only side in the Bundesliga to not get relegated since its inception to make it into Europe the previous season.

Leverkusen, however, have made it to the group stages of the UEFA Champions League and like two of the other clubs on this list, relied heavily on soon-to-be 30-year-old Stefan Kie?ling, who scored an excellent 27 goals for his team last season. The Germany international has been linked to a host of clubs this season, and although he has committed himself to staying at the Bay Arena, the signing of Son before the arrival of Financial Fair Play means Leverkusen have secured their long-term goalscoring future. Son is 21 and having spent his entire professional career in Germany, the 6’1″ striker could help Leverkusen challenge the top two in the Bundesliga.

2.) Mario Gotze (Bayern Munich and Germany)

Despite being officially signed even before Bayern and Dortmund faced off in the UEFA Champions League final at the Wembley Arena last season, the arrival of Gotze at Germany’s biggest club has had tongues wagging since May and is sure to do so at least for the rest of the season.

In stark contrast to the manner in which fans in Spain or England would have reacted to such a move, Dortmund fans have actually been pretty warm towards him despite his move to one of the club’s biggest rivals. Nevertheless, the arrival of Gotze in Munich, which he himself sees as the next step in his career, will most definitely raise eyebrows as he joins a side which is as talented as it is deep.

The young German’s move will most definitely go down as a very pivotal moment in the histories of both the clubs and the player and how he performs under Pep Guardiola (and Joachim Loew) this season in the run up to Brazil 2014 will be scrutinised by pundits and journalists the world over.

1.) Henrikh Mkhitaryan (Borussia Dortmund and Armenia)

The man brought in to replace Gotze at the Signal Iduna Park is an extremely talented player with his best years ahead of him. Replacing the heartbeat of any side is never easy and that he is the third player to take up the mantle of playmaker-in-chief for Dortmund in the last two years following the departures of Shinji Kagawa and Mario Gotze mean he will be compared to not just one, but two of his predecessors.

Given the status of a club such as Dortmund, there will sadly be no bedding-in time for the Armenia midfielder, who was in the midst of a transfer wrangle between English Premier League outfit Liverpool and his previous club Shakhtar Donestk. He will be expected to slot into Dortmund’s precise, passing game quickly, and despite German football being a significant step up from the leagues in Ukraine, the three-time Armenian Footballer of the Year certainly has the talent to succeed those who have left Dortmund in the past.

He scored 25 goals for the Donbass side last season, setting a new record for the most number of goals scored in the Ukrainian Premier League and should he stay for the long haul in Dortmund, could write his name into the history books at the Signal Iduna Park.