The German Bundesliga will be underway once again very shortly. Will Bayern top the table again? How will Erik ten Hag’s Leverkusen deal with the loss of many central figures? Could Dortmund finally break the curse and lift the Meisterschale? Only time will tell.
Another flurry of summer transfers have come and gone and now it’s time to see who might become the next big Bundesliga star. Some of the biggest signings of the summer were from the Bundesliga. Florian Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong, and Hugo Ekitike, all Bundesliga stars of the previous seasons.
Here are 10 players to keep an eye on this season in the Bundesliga.
Serhou Guirassy
- Age: 29
- Club: Borussia Dortmund
The former Stuttgart striker moved to Dortmund at the beginning of the 2024/25 season. Since joining BVB he scored 21 goals in the Bundesliga, finishing second in the golden boot race to Harry Kane. Guirassy tied with Raphinha for the UEFA Champions League golden boot, scoring 13 goals in 14 games. He also managed 4 goals during this summer’s Club World Cup. He really had an excellent season, proven by his nomination for the Ballon D’or.
Dortmund will begin their first season with Niko Kovac entirely in charge. Guirassy will play a big role in any push for silverware, entrusted to score even more goals than last season, especially now as he reaches his prime.
Lennart Karl
- Age: 17
- Club: Bayern Munich
Previously worn by Jamal Musiala last season (who is now number 10 in Vincent Kompany’s team), Bayern Munich’s number 42 has been handed to another talented young player this season. Thrown into the deep end against Auckland City in the 2025 Club World Cup, Lennart Karl has already made his mark at the Bavarian club. Considered one of the most promising players in German football, the Frammersbach native took advantage of the start of the 2025-26 season to earn a place in Kompany’s squad.
In the Bundesliga, where he has already made six appearances, he became the third youngest player in Bayern’s history to find the back of the net when he took on Borussia Monchengladbach. It was the perfect end to a dream week for the Under-17 international, who, just a few days earlier, had become the youngest Bavarian player to score in the Champions League. A wonderful way to celebrate his first start.
Luis Diaz
- Age: 28
- Club: Bayern Munich
The Colombian winger moved from Anfield to the Allianz Arena this summer for a staggering £65 million. One might think that it is a strange move for the German Champions to make. Signing players from the English Premier League is seeming to prove fruitful for Bayern, with the arrival of Harry Kane and Michael Olise in recent years.
The Colombian scored 13 goals last season as Liverpool were crowned as Premier League champions. This season in Munich, that tally could get much higher.
Can Uzun
- Age: 19
- Club: Eintracht Frankfurt
This young Turkish midfielder for Frankfurt didn’t get many starts last season, but in his 20 Bundesliga appearances he scored four goals, and one in the Europa league.
He was awarded player of the month in February. He has expressed his dissatisfaction with the lack of starts but this season could be his season to shine with Frankfurt, especially with their qualification to the Champions League.
The Turk was one of Nuremberg’s best players during his time in the 2. Bundesliga, and he will have a true breakthrough season this year.
Jarell Quansah
- Age: 22
- Club: Bayer Leverkusen
With the departure of Florian Wirtz and Jeremie Frimpong to Liverpool, Jarell Quansah went in the opposite direction, arriving to Leverkusen in a deal worth £35 million.
Erik ten Hag can clearly see something in this young centre-back, and he will have a big task at Leverkusen with so many of their star players leaving this summer. At Liverpool, getting playing time over van Dijk and Konate was just not going to happen. At Leverkusen, things will be different, and the Englishman will have a real chance to prove himself.
Jobe Bellingham
- Age: 19
- Club: Borussia Dortmund
Jobe has followed in the footsteps of his superstar brother Jude by joining Borussia Dortmund. He got to play in the Club World Cup over the summer, scoring 1 goal and assisting another. He was unable to face his brother in the ‘Bellingham Derby’ between die Schwarzgelben and Real Madrid due to suspension.
The young midfielder has yet to truly prove himself at Dortmund, but his talismanic performance for Sunderland in their promotion campaign to the Premier League was enough for Dortmund’s management to take a chance on him.
Niko Kovac is looking to shrink his squad size to around 22 players, giving Jobe a key role in Dortmund’s midfield this season.
Patrick Schick
- Age: 29
- Club: Bayer Leverkusen
Schick is one of the Leverkusen players left since their squad was plundered by the Premier League. The Czech striker scored 21 goals in 31 appearances last season for die Werkself. If Leverkusen are going to have much of a chance of staying in the top four this season, he needs to perform again this season.
Much of it will rely on ten Hag’s style of football this season but there’s no reason Schick doesn’t outperform himself in the upcoming season.
Johan Bakayoko
- Age: 22
- Club: RB Leipzig
This young Belgian winger has been on the radar of many Bundesliga teams in the last couple years. Many Football Manager players will know his name well.
Over the previous two seasons for PSV, he scored a total of 21 goals with 10 assists in the Eredivisie, with 3 additional goals and 6 assists in the Champions League. He moved to RB Leipzig this summer for a deal reported to be around €22 million.
It looks like Xavi Simons will be departing Leipzig very soon, and this will be Bakayoko’s chance to cement himself as his replacement. He’s only twenty-two years old and could become the centre of Leipzig’s attack in no time.
Karim Adeyemi
- Age: 23
- Club: Borussia Dortmund
Karim Adeyemi scored 7 goals and made 6 assists in his 25 Bundesliga appearances last season, he spent a number of months injured following his hat-trick against Celtic in the Champions League. He scored 5 goals and assisted 1 in the Champions League.
This young winger has been central to Dortmund’s successful matches in recent years, including their 2-0 win away to Bayern in the 2023/24 season. He is one of the fastest players in the Bundesliga and recently hinted towards spending his entire career in Dortmund, aiming to be seen as a club legend like Marco Reus.
If Dortmund attain any level of success this season, Adeyemi will have a hand in it.
Ermedin Demirovic
- Age: 27
- Club: VfB Stuttgart
This Bosnia & Herzegovina international was VfB Stuttgart’s top goalscorer last season, netting 15 goals and assisting 1 in his 34 Bundesliga appearances. Since Serhou Guirassy departed the Neckarstadion, Demirovic has stepped up as the club’s main goalscorer. Despite this, he is not near the level of Guirassy but they will be aiming higher this season with their disappointing 9th place finish last season.
Stuttgart won the DFB Pokal and will be intent on challenging for it once again this year. Despite competing in the Champions League last season, Stuttgart’s talent is not looking to be at the level to achieve qualification once again, but who knows?
