Welcome to The Top 10 Bundesliga Goals of the 2015/16 season. A league always offering heart stopping entertainment and capacity crowds displaying spectacular support; the Bundesliga was the most attended league in world football in the 2015/16 season. Top tier clubs such as Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich maintained attendances of 99.98% (Dortmund) and 100% (Bayern) capacity respectively, displaying a passion unrivaled around the world. Sit back and enjoy The Top 10 Bundesliga goals of the season.
10. CLAUDIO PIZARRO – WERDER BREMEN VS HANNOVER 96 – 6 MARCH, 2016
At 37 years of age, Claudio Pizarro continues to show a lethal touch in the penalty area, his instinctive reactions on full display with this glorious strike against Hannover. The veteran striker is a legend in the Bundesliga, tallying 190 league goals in 411 appearances spread amongst two stays at Bayern Munich and three stays with current club Werder Bremen. The six time Bundesliga winner and Champions League winner will reach his 38th birthday in October, and for the sake of selfishness, let’s hope he keeps playing so we can continue to marvel at his finishing ability.
9. KONSTANTINOS STAFYLIDIS – FC AUGSBURG VS FC INGOLSTADT 04 – 7 FEBRUARY, 2016
The Greek international scored his first goal for Augsburg in spectacular fashion, a swerving volley into the top corner to open the scoring against Ingolstadt. Stafylidis has struggled to secure a starting position for his club with just 11 appearances in the Bundesliga last season, with only eight of them starting appearances, but will do his chances no harm with strikes like this.
8. MARCEL HELLER – SV DARMSTADT 98 VS HANNOVER 96 – 15 AUGUST, 2015
A blistering one-man counter attack provided by Marcel Heller, sealed with an emphatic finish off the cross bar and into the back of the net. A truly historic moment for SV Darmstadt, this goal was their first scored in the top flight since a receiving 6-1 thumping from Borussia Monchengladbach in 1982. A club who had previously endured a 33-year run in the lower leagues of German football, this was only the beginning, as they would go on to secure another season in the Bundesliga by finishing 14th.
7. LEROY SANE – FC SCHALKE 04 VS EINTRACHT FRANKFURT – 24 SEPTEMBER, 2015
A stunning solo strike from the now full German international, who appeared to run out of options when closed down by Frankfurt goalkeeper Lucas Hradecky. Instead, he held his nerve to dart past Aleksandar Ignjovski and Hradecky to slot the ball into an empty net. The 20-year-old’s rise has been swift, with just two years on the first team at Schalke (not counting the 13/14 season where he made one league appearance off the bench). In 2015/16, he scored eight goals from 33 appearances in the Bundesliga and now has Champions League experience, playing seven games and scoring once.
6. FABIAN LUSTENBERGER – HERTHA BERLIN VS VFB STUTTGART – 12 SEPTEMBER, 2015
Defensive utility Fabian Lustenberger has spent nine seasons at Hertha Berlin, floating between the top and second division in Germany, and this thumping strike from range was his first top flight goal since the 2008/09 season. His more recent senior team strike was in the 2010/11 campaign, but that was in the second division Bundesliga. Hertha Berlin had a fantastic 2015/16 season, finishing 7th in the Bundesliga, making the semi-finals of the DFB-Pokal and booking a Third Qualifying Round spot in next season’s UEFA Europa League
5. FRANCK RIBERY – BAYERN MUNICH VS EINTRACHT FRANKFURT – 3 APRIL, 2016
Franck Ribery has a rich history full of team and personal accolades, tallying 70 league goals and 106 overall from 321 appearances at Bayern Munich. His last two seasons has seen his appearances run scarce, with just 28, as his presence and influence dwindles as a new breed of talent rises through the ranks at Bayern. His ability to create something out of nothing, as he does here, is a reminder that he’s not done yet. This was one of Ribery’s mere two league goals of the season, but was enough to secure three points with a 1-0 victory on Bayern’s dominant march to their 26th Bundesliga title.
4. THOMAS MULLER – BAYERN MUNICH VS SV DARMSTADT 98 – 21 FEBRUARY, 2016
Darmstadt took the lead in the first half against Bayern Munich when Sandro Wagner struck in the 26th minute, and held that lead until half time. Thomas Muller popped up with an equalizer for Bayern early in the second half, and then produced this piece of magic in the 71st minute to send Bayern into the lead for the first time in the match. They would go on to win 3-1; a classic example of Bayern’s resilience in matches where things originally appeared to not be going their way.
3. FABIAN JOHNSON – BORUSSIA MONCHENGLADBACH VS 1899 HOFFENHEIM – 29 NOVEMBER, 2015
Fabian Johnson scored the first and last goal in a 3-3 thriller between Monchengladbach and Hoffenheim, and although they were both great strikes, the second goal is superior due to the overall team contribution with quick, slick and incisive passing to create a goal scoring opportunity. Johnson’s combined stamina, composure and finishing ability to sell two defenders with a dummy in the box following a 50-odd yard sprint to equalize for his side with a few minutes remaining makes it easily one of the best goals of the 2015/16 Bundesliga season. (4:52 of video)
2. SHINJI KAGAWA – BORUSSIA DORTMUND VS FC SCHALKE 04 – 10 APRIL, 2016
Shinji Kagawa opened the scoring in the Revierderby with a delicate lob over Ralf Fahrmann to finish off a well-worked team move. The Japanese international enjoyed a prolific 2015/16 campaign, scoring nine league goals in 29 appearances, now back at Borussia Dortmund for the second time after a two-year spell with Manchester United.
1. ROBERT LEWANDOWSKI – BAYERN MUNICH VS WOLFSBURG – 23 SEPTEMBER, 2015
Robert Lewandowski entered the Guinness Book of Records when he came on as a substitute against Wolfsburg to score five goals in nine minutes. Wolfsburg lead 1-0 at half time as Lewandowski watched from the substitutes bench, before coming on in the 46th minute for Thiago. Upon entering the field, he would break no less than four world records. They were: record goals scored by a substitute in the Bundesliga (five), fastest Bundesliga hat trick (three minutes and 22 seconds), fastest four goals scored in a Bundesliga match (five minutes and 42 seconds) and the fastest five goals scored in a Bundesliga match (eight minutes and 59 seconds). He saved his best for last, his fifth of the night sums the performance up perfectly and is simply the best strike of the 2015/16 Bundesliga season.
There you have it, the best 10 strikes from the Bundesliga 2015/16 season. How would you have ranked the goals? Which strikes did we miss?
