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The 2019/20 Premier League season has seen imports from the Bundesliga light up the league campaign. The likes of Christian Pulisic who arrived from Borussia Dortmund and Sebastian Haller who left Eintracht Frankfurt have been lighting it up with Chelsea and West Ham respectively.
In the many years that have gone by, the players that have arrived in England from the Bundesliga have generally been a success. Liverpool have been increasingly seeing the value of having Naby Keita on the pitch, Joelinton is finding his feet at Newcastle United but continues in an upward curve, and Granit Xhaka, who had plenty of good times at Arsenal seems like he's at a controversial end to his time with the Gunners.
There's been the odd case like that of Nuri Sahin of players who were sublime in Germany but never really stepped up in the Premier League, but especially Arsenal, Manchester City, and Chelsea have seen plenty of talent impact their teams positively over the years thanks to players from the Bundesliga.
10. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
His impact for Arsenal seems particularly large at the moment. He came from regularly competing with Robert Lewandowski in the Bundesliga to throw his hat almost immediately in the race for top scorer in England.
Despite Arsenal not really firing on all cylinders, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been delivering consistently and is a bright spark in a bleak time for the Gunners. The Gabon forward's joint top-scoring season last time around even as Arsenal failed to make top 4 in the league is a testament to his importance in this team.
Many would be threatened by the presence of an Alexandre Lacazette in the same squad, but Aubameyang's ability to combine with the French striker has been a big plus for Arsenal so far.
Also check out:Bundesliga schedule EPL fixtures EPL table
9. Ilkay Gundogan
It was a bit of a surprise when Manchester City bought Ilkay Gundogan from Borussia Dortmund because the midfielder was suffering from a back injury that seemed like it would shorten his career.
Whatever the City scouts and medical team saw back then is paying off now as Gundogann impressed in the Premier League with his ability to play well with the ball at his feet and add bite to the midfield without it.
Although he may be remembered for his title-winning season with Dortmund or the two he had in England with Manchester City, Gundogan had a profound effect on the Dortmund team in 2012-13 when they made it to the Champions League final under Jurgen Klopp.
It has been an illustrious career for the midfielder so far, and he seems keen to add to his honour roll as he continues to star in the City midfield.
8. Nigel de Jong
Yet another Manchester City name but surely not the last on this list. Nigel de Jong made the switch from Hamburg to Manchester City in 2009. The tough-tackling midfielder took no prisoners on his way to two domestic honours including a Premier League title and one FA Cup win.
Honestly, Shinji Kagawa could've been in this place for his move from Dortmund to Manchester United, or Andre Schurrle for his impact at Chelsea since moving from Bayer Leverkusen. But de Jong defined a definitive period of football for Manchester City at very early stages of the rebuild and gave them the steel at the base of midfield upon which to create their empire.
Although he wasn't known as a technical player, he often embedded himself in the consciousness of fans and the City faithful appreciated the work he put in for the team.
7. Per Mertesacker
There's been plenty of chat regarding Per Mertesacker being slow and his physical ability on the pitch, yet Arsene Wenger continued to put his trust in the defender for as long as they were together at Arsenal.
Mertesacker was an important part of three FA Cup-winning campaigns for Arsenal while he was a player with the Gunners. Now he continues to contribute to the club as Academy Coach.
There may be doubts about his effectiveness for Arsenal and questions raised about whether they could've done better than Mertesacker, but he soldiered on despite this uncertainty and delivered for the North Londoners week in and week out.
Perhaps Lukas Podolski captures the minds of Arsenal more but Mertesacker was a servant of the club for longer and has arguably added more value to this team that many are prepared to admit.
6. Leroy Sane
An absolute revelation at Schalke, Leroy Sane brought his skills to Manchester City in 2016. He seems to be destined to return to Germany soon, but he has set the league alight in his three seasons in the Premier League.
There's always plenty of talk about players taking some time to adapt to a league, especially when they're referring to the Premier League, but Sane hit the ground running as he impressed with 9 goals in his first season. But the best was yet to come from the young German national as he turned defenders inside out on the way to two titles with Manchester City.
There has been some talk of attitude problems and inconsistency, but the talent is apparent where Sane is concerned. It's precisely the reason that Bayern Munich are lining up for his services and despite City wanting to keep him for a longer-term, the winger seems to have his mindset on home.
5. Michael Ballack
Apart from his four-season spell at Chelsea, Michael Ballack spent the rest of his career in Germany. Wherever he went, the midfielder added class to the midfield and it was true even more so in his time at the London club.
His best time in England perhaps came under Carlo Ancelotti as he won the league in his final season with Chelsea as the Blues did the domestic double that season in sublime form. He was also part of the infamous spat with the referee in the 2009 tie against Barcelona when Chelsea felt denied by poor refereeing against Barcelona.
Among the few midfielders who could impose themselves on a game in terms of physicality but also be able to display some good close control and passing ability on the ball, Ballack became incredibly sought after and his time in England saw him become part of a memorable midfield for Chelsea.
4. Edin Dzeko
Probably an unremarkable move when the Bosnian made the shift from Wolfsburg to Manchester City in 2011, but Edin Dzeko was determined to stamp his mark on the Premier League and for nearly five years as he continued to be under-rated in the league, Dzeko put in season after season of consistent performances for City before he left for Roma.
He's one of the few in this list who have managed to win both the Bundesliga and the Premier League. it's a career that has seen many accolades but perhaps has been criminally underrated. He's been hailed for his spells in Germany and now in Italy but his time in England has less of a sheen to it.
Nonetheless, the striker has been a massive impact on the English League and Manchester City may have had strikers who score more goals, but when Dzeko played alongside the likes of Aguero and Tevez, it provided different threats that opponents found difficult to deal with.
3. Vincent Kompany
The talismanic former captain of Manchester City has been the face of this City rebuild as he arrived from Hamburg in 2008 with no massive credentials to his name but bags of talent and heart.
Vincent Kompany won the Premier League four times with Manchester City, bagged the League Cup four times as well, and has two FA Cups to his name. As if the accolades weren't enough, Kompany has been the representation of this new era that has dawned upon Manchester City making them now perhaps the most formidable team in Europe.
The Belgian defender arrived as a fresh-faced boy who had a point to prove and was thrown into the deep end. He would suffer for three seasons with City before seeing perhaps the most dramatic title victory in the 2011-12 season as they won the title in the dying seconds of the last day.
2. Heung-Min Son
Harry Kane has been the blue-eyed boy at Tottenham Hotspur for many seasons now, but Heung-Min Son has been a revelation playing alongside him. The versatile forward has been deployed in so many positions and has done well so often that it's difficult to pin down his best starting role.
Although, perhaps the dominant position in his Spurs career has been that of an inside forward.
The South Korean has achieved almost cult status with Tottenham thanks to his consistent performances.
His ability is particularly apparent on the break as he takes on and beats players to find his team-mates or the back of the net.
Many teams struggle to find a secondary goalscorer in their side who racks up 20 goals a season. Son has done that in two of the last three and scored 18 in the third for Spurs. This season he has already scored 8 and could finish the season with a similar tally or more.
1. Kevin De Bruyne
Let's begin with the accolades - two-time Premier League winner, FA Cup winner, and three times League Cup winner Kevin De Bruyne has been a revelation for Manchester City since he arrived from Wolfsburg.
It has left Chelsea kicking themselves for letting him go and has proved to be a bargain for City, for whom he seems to prove himself every week.
Even if you leave the accolades aside, his importance to this Manchester City team is staggering. He is the spine of this side, and his absence last season was papered over by the sublime form of his team-mates but his ability became apparent on his return and once again this season De Bruyne is showing his elite mentality.
A player clearly brimming with talent was what City saw at Wolfsburg after De Bruyne was named the Bundesliga player fo the season in 2015 and made the switch to the Premier League that summer.
Though we have seen plenty of talents from the Bundesliga lighting it up in England, there have been none quite like the Belgian.
