British Footballers in Germany: The season in review
As many as 10 British nationals are currently on the books of teams in Germany, but how did the likes of Jadon Sancho, Jonjoe Kenny, Rabbi Matondo and Ademola Lookman fare?
bundesliga.com brings you up to date on their performances this term.
Club: Borussia Dortmund
Position: Winger
Age: 20
Bundesliga games this season: 32
Starts: 25
It didn't take Sancho long to start making waves in the Bundesliga after his move from Manchester City to Dortmund in summer 2017, and at just 20 years of age he has emerged as one of the most talented players in the world. He has the numbers to back it up, too – finishing third in the 2019/20 goals chart (17) and second in the assists chart (16).
The London native began the campaign with three goals and four assists in five games, playing a key role in the 4-0 win over Bayer Leverkusen on Matchday 4. After a slight dip in form in the autumn, he returned with a vengeance in mid-November, embarking on a sizzling run which saw him score in 10 of BVB's 14 games before the coronavirus-enforced hiatus.
After beginning the first three games since the Bundesliga's restart on the bench, Sancho started against Paderborn and made the most of his chance. Three goals in the second half in BVB's 6-1 win helped Sancho to his first career hat-trick, as well as a new record by beating Kai Havertz's record to become the youngest player in league history with 30 goals.
Watch: From Keegan to Sancho, Englishmen in the Bundesliga
Club: Schalke
Position: Right-back
Age: 23
Bundesliga games this season: 31
Starts: 31
After finding first-team opportunities hard to come by at boyhood club Everton, Kenny swapped the blue side of Merseyside for the Royal Blue of Schalke in summer 2019.
His tireless, hard-working and battling displays were an instant hit in a working-class region built on elbow grease, and new head coach David Wagner was similarly impressed.
Kenny was a first-team regular all season; indeed, Bastian Oczipka was the only Schalke player with more minutes on the field than him in 2019/20. Solid in his defensive duties, the 23-year-old has shown he is also adept going forward, and can play as a right wing-back too, chipping in with two goals (against Hertha Berlin on Matchday 3 and Union Berlin on Matchday 30) and three assists. He missed the last game of the season due to suspension for accumulation of yellow cards.
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Club: Schalke
Position: Winger
Age: 19
Bundesliga games this season: 20
Starts: 14
Wales international Matondo followed his former Manchester City academy teammate Sancho to Germany in January 2019, eager for his own breakthrough at professional level.
He made seven Bundesliga appearances for Schalke towards the end of the 2018/19 season, and was a regular in the Royal Blues' squads this term too. A lively attacking midfielder, his game time was initially limited by the outstanding form of Amine Harit, but Matondo still made 14 starts and six substitute appearances.
He scored his first top-flight goal in an impressive 3-1 win away to RB Leipzig on Matchday 6, and grabbed his second in the defeat to Wolfsburg on Matchday 33.
Club: RB Leipzig
Position: Winger
Age: 22
Bundesliga games this season: 11
Starts: 1
Lookman made waves at Leipzig during his first taste of Bundesliga football between January and June 2018, registering five goals and four assists in 11 games on loan from Everton.
He returned to England that summer, but was back at the Red Bull Arena a year later, this time on a permanent deal. The England U21 international has struggled to make the same kind of impact under Julian Nagelsmann and was on the fringes of the starting line-up throughout 2019/20.
Lookman made just one league start, whilst coming off the bench in six of Leipzig's last 10 Bundesliga games of the season - most recently against Fortuna Düsseldorf on Matchday 32.
Watch: From the archive: Lookman's instant impact on Matchday 21 of 2017/18
Club: Augsburg
Position: Centre-back
Age: 21
Bundesliga games this season: 12
Starts: 2
Since his breakthrough at West Ham in the English Premier League back in 2015 as a 16-year-old, Oxford has spent the majority of his playing time in Germany. The ball-playing defender had two loan spells at Borussia Mönchengladbach, where he made eight first-team appearances throughout the 2017/18 season. The London-native wanted to stay in Germany, though, and returned to the Bundesliga in January 2019 when he joined Augsburg on loan.
Oxford made a permanent move to Germany last season from West Ham, signing a four-year contract with Augsburg, where he continued his development this season. It was difficult for Oxford to maintain a place in the first team, however. He was a regular substitute at the start of the campaign, coming on from the bench in four of the first five games before starting against Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich, as well as featuring as a substitute against his former side Gladbach.
The London-born defender has shown great versatility, playing twice at centre-back and 10 times in defensive midfield in his 12 Bundesliga appearances this term. Although he only played four times since Matchday 10, stepping off the bench on Matchdays 27, 31, 32 and 34 it's a good sign for his future that new head coach Heiko Herrlich has put his faith in him.
Club: RB Leipzig
Position: Centre-back
Age: 19
Bundesliga games this season: 3
Starts: 0
Although still just 19, Ampadu is already a nine-time senior Wales international. The centre-back – who, like Oxford, can also play in defensive midfield – joined Leipzig from Chelsea for a season-long loan in the summer of 2019.
First-team openings were hard to come by given the fierce competition for places from the likes of Dayot Upamecano, Ibrahima Konate and Nordi Mukiele, but he was included in a Bundesliga matchday squad 20 times this season.
Ampadu made his debut in Germany's top flight as a substitute on Matchday 10 as Leipzig thrashed Mainz 8-0, and made two further appearances off the bench, against Hertha Berlin on Matchday 11 and Werder Bremen on Matchday 22. He also gained valuable experience in the UEFA Champions League, starting the group stage draw at home to Benfica and also playing against Lyon and Tottenham Hotspur. Injury kept him from further game time since the restart following the coronavirus-enforced hiatus.
Club: Paderborn
Position: Attacking midfielder
Age: 21
Bundesliga games this season: 6
Starts: 2
Evans made his first brief cameo appearance in the Bundesliga as a late substitute in the goalless draw with Fortuna Düsseldorf on Matchday 26 following his winter arrival from Everton.
The 21-year-old made his second outing for the first-team in a five minute display in the 1-1 draw at Leipzig on Matchday 30, adding a third by starting the 5-1 defeat to Paderborn. He also came off the bench in the 1-0 defeat to Union Berlin on Matchday 32 that sealed the team's relegation back to Bundesliga 2. He started the home defeat to Gladbach on Matchday 33 and came off the bench away to Eintracht Frankfurt on Matchday 34.
Club: Borussia Mönchengladbach
Position: Winger
Age: 21
Bundesliga games this season: 1
Starts: 0
Signed from Tottenham in summer 2018 Londoner Bennetts was on the bench for the first team twice at the start of 2019/20, watching on as his side beat Sandhausen 1-0 in the first round of the DFB Cup in August, before drawing 0-0 with Schalke in the Bundesliga a week later.
A hamstring injury forced him to miss much of the season, meaning Bennetts only featured twice for the Gladbach reserves this term, scoring in a 3-2 win over Bonner SC on Matchday 6 in Germany's fourth division.
But he would eventually make his Bundesliga debut on Matchday 32, coming off the bench in the 90th minute of Gladbach's 3-0 win over Wolfsburg, and was an unused substitute in the Foals' next game on Matchday 33.
Look out for
Bundesliga 2
Xavier Amaechi (England) - Hamburg
James Lawrence (Wales) - St. Pauli
Clinton Mola (England) - Stuttgart
Chima Okoroji (England) - Jahn Regensburg
Jordi Osei-Tutu (England) - Bochum
Matt Penney (England) - St. Pauli
Nathaniel Phillips (England) - Stuttgart
Youth
Matthew Bondswell (England) - RB Leipzig U19s
Bright Arrey-Mbi (England) - Bayern Munich U19s
Anselmo Garcia MacNulty (Ireland) - Wolfsburg U17s
Liam Morrison (Scotland) - Bayern U17s
Jamal Musiala (England) - Bayern U19s
Conor Noss (Ireland) - Borussia Mönchengladbach reserves
Joe-Robert Sherbourne (England) - Hamburg U17s
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