Player Focus: Stefan Kiessling deserving of Germany recall

“Joachim Loew has recently stated that he hasn’t planned for me to be involved, so I’m not really thinking about it,” Stefan Kießling exclusively told WhoScored back in April when asked about his international future. The Bayer Leverkusen frontman has seen his career with the national team come to a grinding halt due to his refusal to work with the 53-year-old while he’s in charge of Germany, citing that Loew has shown him a lack of respect.

It’s a shame for Germany as Kießling has proven time and again to be one of the most prolific strikers in the Bundesliga. The 29-year-old ended last season as the league’s top goalscorer with 25 goals and he’s continued his impressive form this term, with only Robert Lewandowski (9), Mario Mandzukic, Pierre-Michel Lasogga and Vedad Ibisevic (all 8) netting more than the Leverkusen hitman (7).

1 of those may have been a highly contentious decider in the 2-1 win over Hoffenhiem, but the striker is displaying the qualities that have made him one of the most feared marksmen in Europe. Supported by the likes of Sidney Sam, Son Heung-Min and Gonzalo Castro will naturally benefit any striker but Kießling is ensuring that the creativity of the trio doesn’t go to waste.

For a team that lost 2 player that were vital in attack in Andre Schürrle and Daniel Carvajal over the summer, the duo heading to Chelsea and Real Madrid respectively, the burly frontman still boasts a better conversion rate (21.9%) this season than last (20.7%). Any striker may well have seen his form dip with the drop in inventiveness, but Kießling has guaranteed this isn’t the case.

As a result, many believe that Loew should bite the bullet and appeal to the player to return to the national team, more so considering that both Mario Gomez and Miroslav Klose have succumbed to injury recently. That has left Max Kruse as the only striker currently called up to the Germany squad, leaving Loew short on options up front.

Granted, Kruse has preformed admirably this season, netting 7 times and picking up 4 assists for Borussia Mönchengladbach, while securing an average WhoScored rating of 8.08, but the lack of striking alternatives is a concern. Kießling’s rating (7.9) may not be as impressive as that of his compatriot, but it’s better than that of Gomez (7.4) or Klose (6.71), emphasising the superior quality of his performances.

At present, the striker is averaging 62.7 touches per goal in the Bundesliga, a fair return for a player performing as the lead frontman. Comparitively, 3 of the Bundesliga’s top goalscorers, Lasogga (27.9), Ibisevic (54.3) and Lewandowski (58.2), are averaging fewer touches per goal than Kießling, but this signifies his increased involvement in the build-up in Leverkusen’s offensive moves.

With the quality of options available to Loew behind a lone striker, Kießling would undoubtedly thrive, such is his ability to bring others into the game. This is underlined in his average of 1.4 key passes per game and 3 assists this season, while ‘key passes’ is a WhoScored strength of his.

Kruse (2.3) may be averaging more key passes per game than his compatriot, but the striking ability and physical presence of Kießling would allow for Germany to adopt a alternate dimension to their attack that would exploit the offensive capabilities of the likes of Mesut Özil, Marco Reus and Julian Draxler. With the goal getting qualities of the German midfield, it’s likely they would flourish with a player of Kießling’s bulky stature leading the line.

This is perhaps emphasised in that 1 of his WhoScored strengths is ‘aerial duels’, with the Leverkusen marksman having won 67 this season already; only Adrián Ramos (80) and André Hahn (77) have won more in the Bundesliga. With a style of play of his being ‘likes to do flick ons’, his ability in the air would prove a further benefit to his international teammates as they look to run in behind the defence and capitalise on the extra space afforded to them.

Having scored the most headed goals (4) in Germany’s top tier, Kießling’s aerial ability in front of goal would be a further asset that Loew could utilise. Should Die Mannschaft be struggling to break down the opposition, the frontman would make an ideal ‘Plan B’ for the Germany boss, which may be of huge importance given each nation is allowed only 23 men in their World Cup squad.

For that to happen, however, it’s expected that Loew would have to make an effort with Kießling to return to the national fold before any dream of a recall becomes reality. Kruse may be impressing for Mönchengladbach, but with Gomez and Klose sidelined with injury, Kießling has again showcased his prowess, highlighting how he’s deserving of a place in the national team once again.