Bundesliga team of the week – Matchday 4
After the international break, Bundesliga clubs were looking to gain important early points in the opening stages of the 2018-19 campaign.
VfB Stuttgart and Fortuna Dusseldorf started the same week with a 0-0 draw against each other. Hertha BSC continued their high-flying start with a 4-2 win over Monchengladbach. With 10 points from 4 games, this is the best ever start for a season for them.
Wolfsburg were defeated by Freiburg and an exciting match between FC Augsburg and Werder Bremen ended with the result 2-3. Nurnberg secured a win over Hannover. Elsewhere, Hoffenheim were denied a victory with a late equalizer by Pulisic, which resulted in a draw against 10-men Dortmund.
Schalke's disastrous start continued, as Bayern defeated them comfortably 2-0 to leave them without a point. Leverkusen won against Mainz, with Eintracht and Leipzig sharing points with a 1-1 draw.
Now let us turn to the individual performances of the weekend. Here is the team of the week, starting with the man in goal.
Goalkeeper
GK: Ron-Robert Zieler, VfB Stuttgart
VfB Stuttgart can thank Zieler for winning a point against Fortuna Düsseldorf. The 29-year-old made sure his side kept a clean sheet with numerous great saves.
Defenders
RB: Valentino Lazaro, Hertha BSC
The natural winger has been solid at right-back this season and did very well to keep Gladbach's Thorgan Hazard under control. He also contributed to the offence and scored the 2nd goal in Hertha's 4-2 win.
LB: David Alaba, Bayern München
Combined very well with Franck Ribery down the left side and was involved in many dangerous situations. Hit the bar with a well-struck free-kick and made Schalke's goalkeeper Fahrmann work hard.
CB: Dominique Heintz, SC Freiburg
Heintz was very reliable and strong in the 3-1 win over Wolfsburg. He won almost 80 percent of his duels.
CB: Makoto Hasebe, Eintracht Frankfurt
Having his first start this season, the Japanese veteran oozed calmness and experience in the 1-1 draw with RB Leipzig. Generally a defensive midfielder, he started as a centre-back in this match and he didn't disappoint. He was good at bringing the ball forward from defence.