FOOTY FAIR

Throwback Thursdays: The FC Schalke 04 Scandal

2016-08-25T08:00:00.000-04:00

FC Schalke 04, one of the more famous names in German football, were involved in a scandal nearly ninety years ago that for a brief moment looked to have put the club's existence in jeopardy.

Prior to the start of the Bundesliga in 1963-1964, German football was comprised of a collection of sub-regional and part-time leagues.

In the late 1920's the regional Western German league saw the emergence of a powerful side from Gelsenkirchen who at that stage called themselves FC Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04.

The club won the title in 1929 and 1930, but on 25 August 1930, the league banned fourteen players of their players for receiving illegal payments.

After an investigation by German football authorities, it turned out that the club had paid the players ten Reichsmarks instead of the maximum five for away matches.

In an era of strict amateurism in German sport, along with economic hardship in the country, this was considered an outrage and the league had no choice but to come down heavy on Schalke.

The players, including star striker Ernst Kuzorra, were banned for the entire 1930-31 season. In addition to this, eight members of the Schalke board were suspended and sadly club treasurer Willie Nier committed suicide by drowning himself in the midst of the scandal.

It was a dark period for the club, but they would return with a vengeance by winning the 1932 and 1933 titles after the ban had run it's course.

Although Schalke have had their ups and downs in the decades since, in terms of membership they are still the second largest club in Germany behind Bayern Munich.

The History of VfL Wolfsburg in 3 Minutes (Video)

2016-04-09T12:00:00.000-04:00

Most football fans were shocked by Wolfsburg's incredible 2-0 win over Spanish side Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League this past week. And despite the German's club fantastic run in Europe's premier competition, many of the tournament's followers are yet to learn much about the side. That's where the German Bundesliga decided to step in, producing this simple but informative video clip about the history of VfL Wolfsburg.

Cheating and Corruption in Football - Part 3 of 5: Robert Hoyzer, Germany's Matching Fixing Official

2016-04-08T08:00:00.000-04:00

In 2005, German football was left with a black eye when it emerged that referee Robert Hoyzer had been involved in rigging a cup match involving Hamburg and Paderborn.

Working with a Croatian gambling syndicate that arranged the €2m (£1.36m) betting scam, Hoyzer awarded the regional league side Paderborn two penalties to help them come back from two goals down to knock out top division Hamburg in the first round of the German Cup. He also sent off Hamburg striker Emile Mpenza in Paderborn's 4-2 victory.

Although it was this match that raised the red flag on Hoyzer's impropriety, there were at least nine other matches that he fixed or tried to fix over the 2004-2005 season.

After initially denying the claims against him, the under fire match official eventually admitted that he had accepted €67,000 and an expensive television for his part in the scheme.

Hoyzer would later be found guilty of fraud in a Berlin court and sentenced to two years in prison.

Happy 116th Birthday FC Bayern

2016-02-27T08:00:00.001-05:00

Founded in a café in Munich on February 27, 1900, FC Bayern is now the largest sports club in the world and is celebrating its 116th birthday.

Franz John and his young footballer friends who played for club MTV Munchen, decided to cut ties with their club and start their own. Meeting at café Gisela in the city, the group founded club FC Bayern, surely, never imagining the size their creation ould grow to over the next century plus.

Franz would go on to become the club's first president, while the team itself would go on to win the German championship a record 25 times and the UEFA Champions League on 5 ocassions to date, among many other titles.

We here at FootyFair would like to wish FC Bayern a very happy birthday.

Hannover 96 Put a Positive Spin on Their Current Problems

2016-01-26T08:00:00.000-05:00

There's little you can do but laugh and try to look on the bright side of life sometimes when your football club is playing poorly.

But in the serious world of modern football you rarely expect the club's themselves to adopt a bit of cheeky gallows humour.

Hannover 96, currently bottom of the Bundesliga, found a way to turn that frown upside down by flipping the league table in a tweet this week.

Voila! They're in first and Bayern are serious contenders for the drop now. Genius stuff really.

#Mondaymotivation #Kopfstandmethode🙃#H96 #NiemalsAllein⚫️⚪️💚 pic.twitter.com/ijd413UhGW
— Hannover 96 (@Hannover96) January 25, 2016

FC Köln's Karneval Kit

2015-10-31T12:00:00.000-04:00

Not to be outdone by 1860 Munich and their unique Oktoberfest kit, FC Köln have raised or perhaps lowered the bar when it comes to novelty kits.

Complete with fake tassels, a cummerbund, and a decorative collar, this red limited strip is ghastly it will almost certainly become a collectors item. Because... Well... Collectors are odd like that.

The kit is being released to coincide with the city's annual Karneval events.

Karneval is an annual celebration that kicks off on the 11th minute, of the 11th hour, of the 11th of November to celebrate the "fifth season" and runs in earnest up until the new year.

The celebration includes parades, music, lots of food and fancy dress parties.
Cologne's kits are in homage to the city’s Roten Funken (Red Sparks) guards, one of the traditional groups to participate in the Karneval.

If you want to get your hands on one of these little beauties, the kit is currently available for €89.95 on FC Köln's website.

The Player Who Swapped the Bundesliga for Baseball

2015-10-03T12:00:00.000-04:00

Besides being supporters of the beautiful game, both my fellow FootyFair contributor Kon and I are huge baseball fans.

I guess running this particular site may have tipped you off on the love we have for football, but this week as we celebrated our home town Toronto Blue Jays winning their first division title in 22 years a story connecting both sports came to my attention.

On September 27, a ball player by the name of Max Kepler made his debut for the Minnesota Twins.

What's unusual of this late season call-up is that Kepler is from Berlin, Germany not exactly a hotbed of baseball.

In a country where football is king, Kepler did however stand out as a player with potential in that particular sport as well.

Before trading the pitch for the diamond, Kepler was a member of the youth academy of Hertha BSC, who are of course one of the more famous clubs in Germany's Bundesliga.

Although his primary position was as a keeper for Hertha, he also played out in attacking positions in some matches for the youth side and appeared to be making solid progress through their ranks before he made a shocking about face.

At 15 Kepler dropped football for baseball, much to the shock of his friends and neighbours. Although his U.S. born mother had passed along to him a love for America's Pastime at a young age, no one expected Max to attempt to make a career out of a sport that barely registers a passing interest in Germany, and much less give up a shot at playing in the Bundesliga.

But with his mother's help he found a team in Bavaria and although the competition the 6'4 multi-sport phenom faced in the league there was substandard at best, his natural ability began to attract notice from across the Atlantic.

American scouts were so impressed with the left handed hitting centre fielder's range and strength, that 15 ball clubs presented him with offers to come to North America.

Eventually he settled on the Minnesota Twins, who signed him up with a European-record bonus of $800,000. At 17 he moved to the U.S. and after completing his last semester of high school, Kepler joined the Twins minor league system.

Two years into his minor league career an elbow injury delayed his progress, but this season he came back strong for the Chattanooga Lookouts of the Class AA Southern League as he ended up with a .327 batting average, nine home runs, and 18 stolen bases on his way to being named the Southern League Player of the Year.

But more was to come for Kepler as he was called up to the big leagues on September 21, and made his debut as a pinch hitter against Detroit last Sunday.

Considered one of the Twins brightest prospects, and a player that will be given every chance to crack their 25 man roster next season, Kepler could go some way towards helping grow an interest in baseball back in his homeland.

Time Lapse in Schalke - From Sunrise to Sunset (Video)

2015-09-14T16:00:00.000-04:00

German Bundesliga's Youtube channel has released another amazing match day time lapse video. After featuring Borussia Dortmund's game day experience previously, the league has done the same for Schalke. If you ever wondered what match day looks like in Gelsenkirchen, this is your chance.

The Ultimate Bundesliga Google Maps Stadium Quiz

2015-08-20T16:00:00.000-04:00

You think you know your Bundesliga stadiums? Well, how about proving it. We've got all 36 clubs and 35 stadiums from Bundesliga and 2.Bundesliga as they appear on Google maps. Can you guess all 35?

Poll Maker

The Round Table: Highlights of the Season

2015-05-03T12:00:00.000-04:00

Every weekend we go beyond the headlines and talk to real football fans about current topics or issues in the football world.
Today the group discussed their own highlights of the 2014/2015 football season.

On the round table today we were joined by:

Bramble
Parmar
Luka
Adrien
Jay
Iain (me)

With only about a month to go in the European Football season for 2014/2015, what have been your highlights so far this season?

Jay:

As a Manchester United fan, sadly mostly just David DeGea's performances. Haha. Though in have to say the battle at the bottom of the table has been great to follow, providing some great games!

Also Juan Mata's scissor volley, LvG press conferences, and Jose Mourinho's antics.

Parmar:

Being top of the table all season long (LOL) and being 13 points clear with an opportunity to win the title at home.

BORING BORING CHELSEA and Mourinho's reply: 'Boring, I think, is 10 years without a title. That's very boring,' ''The boring team is the second team with most goals in the Premier League, the best goal difference. Only Manchester City have scored more goals than us.'

Liverpool coming back down to reality and being where they belong in the table.

The relegation battle has been intriguing and cool to follow. I'm interested to see if Villa can keep their winning form up and stay out of relegation. It would be a shame seeing a club like Villa be sent down.

Bramble:

Mata's Scissor volley at AnFAILED, Mario Balotelli sucking, Steven Gerrard announcing he's leaving, David De Gea coming into his own at United, Daley Blind, LVG pressers, Jose Mourinho trolling, United coming back, Brendan Rodgers Liverpoop. Chris Smalling having more goals than Balotelli, the rest of Europe is pretty standard fare really Bayern Munich winning is normal, La Liga is normal, Ligue 1 is somewhat normal, the predictable CL is beyond predictable and normal, so no highlights there.

Iain:

My highlights include Brendan Rodgers being exposed as a tactical fraud and also doing what he criticized Spurs for when they sold Gareth Bale: Replacing quality with quantity after Luis Suarez was sold.

Manchester United's improved play, in the second half of the season has been a highlight with Juan Mata's goal along with dominating Liverpool and City being a joy to watch.

Southampton have been a nice story and it was great to see Aston Villa get to the FA Cup Final.

Adrian:

While the race to become Germany's champion might not have been incredibly competitive, there's been more than a few talking points this season.

The biggest one being Borussia Dortmund's incredible fall from grace. Two years ago they were playing in a Champions League final, and this season they found themselves rock bottom of the table on multiple occasions and it looks as though they'll be losing some marquee players in the summer not the least of which...their manager.

Wolfsburg of course surprised folk by taking up the challenge of dethroning Bayern, and while in the end they failed they will at least have the honour of providing the league with the MVP. Kevin de Bruyne was a one man wrecking crew at times and Wolfsburg will be hard pressed to keep him this summer if the offers start to roll in. Would be a shame as they seemed to have been building something good there.

There's a good chance that the only club to play in every single Bundesliga season will finally be relegated, HSV. The tiny Bavarian club Augsburg could end up in Europe next season. And finally ahead of the big guns like Lewandowski, Müller, Reus, Robben, Huntelaar, and de Bruyne the torschützenkönig will very likely be Frankfurt's Alexander Meier. Whenever Frankfurt scored it seemed as though it was Meier doing the business and he'd be the first Eintracht player to win the scoring title since former Leeds man Anthony Yeboah was joint top scorer in 93-94.

Luka:

Favourite matches -

Leverkusen 4-5 Wolfsburg

Chelsea 2-2 PSG

Real Madrid 3-1 Barcelona

Luka:

And how can I forget Montreal vs Club America in the CONCACAF Champions League Final and the meltdown at the O just this past week?

Jay:

That was brilliant. Watching them Limp from a winning position to getting absolutely smashed in the second half was fantastic.

10 Great Quotes from Jürgen Klopp

2015-03-31T12:00:00.000-04:00

When you think of outspoken coach’s one name must pop into your mind almost immediately, Jürgen Klopp.

The Dortmund coach is one of the most eccentric and outspoken coaches in modern football, a true maverick of the game, someone who does what he wants, when he wants and how he wants it. So it shouldn’t surprise anyone that he has had a variety of one liners and incredibly funny quotes over the years.

Here are ten of my favorite quotes from the German coach that has been able to set himself apart from all others.

“During the first interview, I was very disappointed. During the second one I already felt a bit better. If I wait half an hour, I’ll probably have the feeling that we won.”

“I told my players during the break: Since we’re here anyway, we might actually play a bit of football.”

“We have a bow and arrow, and if we aim well, we can hit the target. The problem is that Bayern has a bazooka.”

“The reason Gotze is leaving? He wants to work with this extraordinary coach that is Guardiola. So if it’s anyone’s fault it’s mine. I cannot make myself 15cm shorter and learn Spanish.”

“Go through the world and find me a team who can finish champions in the same league as Bayern. If we should finish second this summer, I’ll find a truck and drive it through my garden. If nobody will rejoice, I’ll do it alone.”

“I asked the fourth official: how many mistakes are you allowed to make? If it’s 15, you have one left.”

“Shinji Kagawa is one of the best players in the world. But at United he plays 20 minutes per game. And on the left. My heart breaks when I see that. A tear springs up in my eye.”

“I sent him a text message saying: ‘Schalke????????’. He was a good guy – until this morning. Why Kevin? He was at Milan.”

“If the audience wants emotions, but you offer lawn chess, either you or they must look for a new stadium.”

“In my playing career I never succeeded in bringing to the field what was going on in my brain. I had the talent for the 5th division, and the mind for the Bundesliga. The result was a career in the 2nd division.”

Hertha BSC's Anis Ben-Hatira Stars as Spider-Man

2015-03-17T16:00:00.001-04:00

As he put away Hertha BSC's first goal against Schalke 04 this past weekend, midfielder Anis Ben-Hatira had only one thing in mind: donning a Spider-Man mask as a shout out to a young fan suffering from cancer.

Coming only a week after the Bundesliga implemented a new rule banning players from donning masks to celebrate goals, Ben-Hatira chose to ignore the certainty of a yellow card and acknowledge Yannik, an eight-year-old Hertha fan who has been fighting Leukemia in hospital.

After learning of the youngster's illness, and taking the time to visit him in hospital recently, Ben-Hatira had posted the following on Social Media:

"We decided to fight against his illness together. In such moments I realize: a healthy person has 1000 desires. A sick person just one.

“Cute guy: you promised me to recover and I promised to stay on your side while the chemotherapy.

“I will visit you regularly. In less than 6 months we will stand in front of the fans in the Olympic stadium and celebrate your recovery!”

While visiting the young fan, the Hertha midfielder had worn a Spider-Man masked as the two had joked around for pictures displayed on Ben-Hatira's Instagram account.

Sure enough after scoring against Schalke, the player ran over to the sidelines to retrieve the mask of the wall crawling Marvel comic book hero and put it on to honour young Yannik.

Despite his yellow card it was a touching act or kindness from the player.

As luck would have it, Yannik was well enough to be in attendance at the match and later joined Ben-Hatira on a lap of honour in front of 60,000 cheering supporters at the Olympiastadion.

The match between Hertha and Schalke ended 2-2, but some days the final result of a match isn't the most important thing and this was one of those days.

5 Less Known Facts About Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang

2015-02-21T08:00:00.000-05:00

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was recently named to the five man short list of contenders for BBC African Footballer of the Year 2014. The current Borussia Dortmund striker is one of the upcoming African players playing in Europe and is building a reputation for himself in Germany.

It is no surprise that his name is one of the five names being considered for this prestigious award. The Gabonese footballer is one of the favorites to win the award which would be a reward for the year he had.

While most knowledgeable fans are aware of what he has done, there are always some facts that elude even the most hardcore fans. Here are five less known facts about Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Fact 1

Aubameyang grew up in Italy and his father was a scout for AC Milan. Aubameyang has both French and Gabonese citizenship, since he was born in France and his father is Gabonese, but his family moved to Italy where he grew up and where his dad found a job as a scout for AC Milan. Both of his brothers currently play for AC Milan youth teams.

Fact 2

Aubameyang is better known for his incredible speed. He has been clocked at 30 meters in 3.7 seconds. He has also claimed to be able to run faster than Olympic sprinter Usain Bolt, but that hasn’t been proven. He has been challenged to a 100 meter race by German sprinter Julian Reus but he has not accepted the challenge.

Fact 3

In 2012, Aubameyang played a game against Olympique Lyonnais wearing a pair of Swarovski crystal encrusted boots valued at $3,918. The boots had 4,000 small crystals in a design that included his name, number and his clubs crest and colors.

Fact 4

Aubameyang is the first Gabonese player to play in the Bundesliga or any other German league. He made his debut on August 10, 2013 after joining Dortmund in July of that same year. He had a dream debut by scoring a hat trick in his first game, which was played against FC Augsburg.

Fact 5

In July 2012, Aubameyang went to London to represent Gabon at the Olympic Games. In the first match against Switzerland he scored the only goal of the game, which would end up being the only goal Gabon would score in the competition. This was Gabon’s first and only ever goal scored at an Olympics.

Goals Galore of Weekend Past

2015-02-16T16:00:00.000-05:00

While the English Premier League took a weekend break to make room for some FA Cup fixtures other leagues went on as scheduled, including England's second tier the Championship. With plenty of regular league football still going on around Europe the 'major' leagues this past weekend have produced a few very interesting matches, all of which saw 7 or more goals being scored in the process. We take a look at the highest scoring matches across the continent, including one very awesome match from England's second division.

7 combined goals

Penafiel 3 - 4 Maritimo (Portugal)
Last place club Panafiel hosted mid-table team Maritimo in a match where the first 20 minutes signaled a possible turn in faith for the bottom-feeders as the hosts were 2-0 up after just 18 minutes played. The visitors from Madeira managed to get one back via a penalty-kick in the first half and then struck three more unanswered to start the second, taking a 4-2 lead. A 90th minute goal from the hosts would prove too late for a comeback of their own, keeping Panafiel at the bottom of the Portuguese top division.

FC Utrecht 6 - 1 FC Dordrecht (Netherlands)
Another 7 match affair and one that also included a last place team was the fixture between FC Utrecht and 18th placed visitors FC Dordrecht. After going 3-0 down the visitors managed to get one back after Utrecht midfielder Willem Janssen was shown a second yellow. But after going down a man themselves just 17 minutes later, the visiting club from South Holland could not hang on, conceding 3 more before the final whistle including a goal from Utrecht's on-loan French U21 striker Sébastien Haller which completed the youngster's hat-trick.

8 combined goals

Bayern Munich 8 - 0 Hamburger SV (Germany)
It's safe to say that Hamburg has not enjoyed prime football success recently, but when they took to the pitch at the Allianza Arena in Munich few could have predicted the one sided match that it would become. The visitor's coach Josef Zinnbauer looked embarrassed on the bench as his club conceded 3 goals in the first half and an additional 5 in the second for an 8-0 final. (highlights below)

Blackpool 4 - 4 Nottingham Forest (England)
Last place Championship side Blackpool have scored just 23 goals in their 30 matches leading up to this affair with Nottingham Forest, so when the score was still 0-0 after 40 minutes it was not a big surprise. But the hosts managed to get one in just before the break, going 1-0 up. In the 65th minute the home side almost surprised themselves, taking a 2 goal lead. But that scoreline would only last two minutes as the visitors replied swiftly with a goal of their own, and then once more two minutes after that. Just like that, the match was all tied-up once more. Instead of losing full control the hosts would retake the lead, but giving up a penalty four minutes after that would bring Forest right back into it. At last Nottingham would take their first lead of the match against the now 10 man Blackpool in what seemed as surely the last goal of the match. But the hosts did not give up and tied the game up in injury time.

9 combined goals

Bayer Leverkusen 4 - 5 Wolfsburg (Germany)
Perhaps the most exciting match of the weekend came about via the German Bundesliga when second place VfL Wolfsburg traveled to Leverkusen. After going 3-0 up in the first half the match seemed all but over and another easy victory for a Wolfsburg side that has been very strong this year. But the hosts had other plans, eventually tying the match up at 4-4 with a spirited second half display. The day belonged to Wolfsburg's Bas Dost however as he slotted the winning goal at the very end of the match to give the visitors an exciting win.

Football Club Minimalist Posters to Decorate Your House

2015-02-12T20:00:00.000-05:00

Ever wondered how you could support your favorite club without breaking that minimalist style of your interior decor? Well, you are indeed in luck because Hungarian designer Balázs Varga has come up with just the right solution.

In this project Varga designed the perfect way to mix the passion of a football fan with the minimalist approach to a stylish home, office or even mancave. His club posters could probably be produced on canvas or framed prints and will not ruin that 'chique' design that you or your girlfriend/wife have so carefully put together.

Here is the collection of club posters from Germany, England, Italy and Spain.

Heartfelt Tweeter Tributes for Junior Malanda

2015-01-14T12:00:00.000-05:00

It is the third days since the tragic car crash death of VfL Wolfsburg and Belgian national team 20 year old prospect Junior Malanda. Regardless of faults and circumstances, a passing of such a young person is always sad news. Here is a collection of some emotional tweets from football clubs, footballers and of course Malanda's closest, the Belgian national players.

You will always be around!! @JuniorMalanda pic.twitter.com/SlKLoiwOIE
— Kevin De Bruyne (@DeBruyneKev) January 10, 2015

Very sad news about Junior Malanda passing away. #RIPMalanda pic.twitter.com/eeBVftjRpo
— Edin Džeko (@EdDzeko) January 10, 2015

May God rest your soul #RIPMalanda
— Axel Witsel (@axelwitsel28) January 10, 2015

Uns fehlen die Worte. Wir sind geschockt, traurig und bei Euch, @VfL_Wolfsburg. #RIPMalanda
— Borussia Dortmund (@BVB) January 10, 2015

Our thoughts go out to the friends and family of Junior Malanda following yesterday's sad news. RIP. pic.twitter.com/czDHLQUVfL
— Wigan Athletic (@LaticsOfficial) January 11, 2015

AS Roma joins the football world in mourning the loss of @VfL_Wolfsburg player Junior #Malanda. Our thoughts are with his family and friends
— AS Roma (@OfficialASRoma) January 10, 2015

RIP mon ami @JuniorMalanda pic.twitter.com/6GYJJlcKeN
— Dennis Praet (@PraetOfficial) January 10, 2015

RIP @JuniorMalanda !! We lose a huge talent and a great person!!😔
— Thibaut Courtois (@thibautcourtois) January 10, 2015

Junior je t'aime mon frère ❤️😭
— R.Lukaku Bolingoli10 (@RomeluLukaku9) January 10, 2015

I'm crying while i'm posting this but this friendship was to good be ended this way ...Junior why u my… http://t.co/L0x26ib4rE
— R.Lukaku Bolingoli10 (@RomeluLukaku9) January 10, 2015

Indescriptible.. Quel tristesse. En pensées et de tout cœur avec les proches de Junior Malanda. Repose en paix, petit frère.
— Vincent Kompany (@VincentKompany) January 10, 2015

I'm very bad to hear that my brother left us today. JR, tu me manques déjà ... pic.twitter.com/KXTjt0fgww
— Marouane Fellaini (@fellainiM) January 10, 2015

Triste d apprendre cette mauvaise nouvelle... Repose en paix petit frere... #RIPJuniorMalanda 😭😭😭
— Eden hazard (@hazardeden10) January 10, 2015

For 2 years we lived together, you always had my back from day 1.. 😭 je t'aime mon frère ❤️ repose en… http://t.co/kMQMLFu15d
— Divock Origi #27 (@DivockOrigi) January 11, 2015

Whyyyyy???😡😡😰😰i love you brooo❤️❤️ pic.twitter.com/drkt8Nz8cR
— Thorgan Hazard (@HazardThorgan8) January 10, 2015

Can Dipping into the Transfer Market Save Dortmund's Season?

2015-01-01T20:00:00.000-05:00

For a club that has challenged Bayern Munich for domestic supremacy over the past few years, while being one of the most exciting sides in the Champions League to say that the first half of this season has been a disappointment for Borussia Dortmund is the understatement of the year.

Injuries to key players such as Marco Reus, Mats Hummels, and Ilkay Gundogan have seriously hurt them, as of course has the loss of Robert Lewandowski to Bayern, which follows on the heels of losing Mario Gotze the year before.

There's also been the suggestion that club's in the Bundesliga have figured out manager Jurgen Klopp's tactics and have been able to soak up Dortmund's typically large amounts of possession and hit them on the break.

With the club second from the bottom, some supporters are wondering if the club will dip into their transfer budget and try to add a few players to help get them out of trouble.

After trying to address some of their creative issues in midfield with the capture of Slovenian international Kevin Kampl from Red Bull Salzburg they have already splashed out €10 million in the coming window, but is there more to follow?

Brought in last summer as replacements for Lewandowski, Italian striker Ciro Immobile and Colombian attacker Adrián Ramos have both failed to find form with Immobile only managing 3 goals in 12 appearances and Ramos scoring only 2 in 12 himself.

The temptation might be there for Klopp to go after another attacker, but to get one in January may not have the immediate impact some might hope for.

First of all, teams still involved in the Champions League are loath to sell on players in the middle of the season, so you can pretty much rule out any attackers from the bigger clubs in Europe, the same goes for clubs in fear of relegation. Even clubs in the middle of the pack across Europe will only look to move along unsettled players and even still will ask for an inflated fee.

If any players are added it'll then be a matter of integrating them into a fairly established side, which isn't alway easy.

So for Dortmund now it's a matter for considering whether or not they want to stick with what they have in their battle to move up the table, or take the plunge into the transfer market, but run the risk of not getting into the European qualifying spots anyway and having less funds to work with next summer.

There is a lot for Klopp to consider this month.

Jordan Carver Could Become Marco Reus New Chauffeur

2014-12-31T08:00:00.000-05:00

After being fined 540 thousand euros for drunk driving and not having his driver’s license with him, Marco Reus received an intriguing offer.

Jordan Carver, German model, offered to be his personal chauffeur. In exchange she didn’t want a lucrative paycheck; instead she asked that Reus would leave Dortmund and sign with Bayern Munich.

“My dear Marco, I am willing to be your personal chauffeur for 24 hours a day and help you recuperate your driver’s license. You just have to accept the following conditions: love me and leave Dortmund for Bayern Munich. I know that I am being ambitious, but both requests are incredible.” Jordan Carver used social media to send this message to Marco Reus.

So far, it looks like Reus hasn’t responded to the proposal made by the beautiful German model. Jordan Carver currently living in the United States doesn’t let distance get in the way of her love for Marco and her favorite football club, Bayern Munich.

Marco has a very difficult choice to make.

An FC Union Berlin Christmas

2014-12-26T08:00:00.001-05:00

Second division German club FC Union Berlin have a very interesting tradition around Christmas time and while their first ever Stadium Christmas Carol brought in less than 100 fans, this year the club celebrated the festive season with 27,000 fans singing Christmas songs in the stands and the club's pitch.

Every person at the Sadion An de Alten Forsterei held a candle or light for a scene that was an absolute delight for photographers and other participants. .

On most occasions the event takes place a couple days before Christmas day, usually on December 23rd.

This year marked the 12th year the club has hosted the Christmas Carol event for their fans.

Sometimes the club's more "passionate" fans, the ultras, join in with a light show of their own

Dortmund's Act of Sportsmanship

2014-12-15T16:00:00.000-05:00

Even the most casual observer of German football is aware of how bad Borussia Dortmund's start to the season has been.
The only club to seriously challenge Bayern Munich for domestic supremacy over the past five years are currently sitting in 16th place in the 18 team Bundesliga and rather than challenging for honours, Jurgen Klopp's side are staring at the very real possibility of a relegation dog fight.

Despite their recent struggles, which continued with a 1-0 loss to Hertha Berlin this past weekend, Dortmund still displayed the class that has won them the admiration of a lot of neutrals.

After a Hertha player, Per Ciljan Skjelbred, lost his boot following a challenge, and was effectively out of the play, Dortmund's players refused to seize on what would have been an easy advantage and just played the ball around until Skjelbred was able to return to the action.

It was a wonderful piece of sportsmanship that you don't often see at professional level. Considering Dortmund were in desperate need of three points they showed a nice bit of class in this situation, which should be applauded.

Sunday Trivia - 5 Faceless Players - Die Grün-Weißen Edition

2014-12-14T12:00:00.001-05:00

This week on 5 Faceless Players trivia we give you footballers from 4 time Bundesliga champions Werder Bremen. How many will you get correct?

1

2

3

4

5

Puma evoSPEED Marco Reus Boots

2014-12-12T08:00:00.000-05:00

Puma is releasing the new evoSPEED boots designed by Marco Reus, and made exclusively for the Borussia Dortmund player.

The color of the boots matches the Dortmund colors but there is more to the design than just colors.

It is a long standing tradition that Dotrmund players visit a children’s hospital in Dortmund before Christmas in order to bring some joy to those kids that will be spending their holiday season in a hospital instead of being home with their families.

The black part of the boot there is a graphic pattern representing the silhouettes of 6000 children who are patients at the hospital every year.

The yellow inside part of the boot shows the hand of an adult holding the hand of a child with the word “hope” tattooed in different languages.

The Marco Reus evoSPEED use the same technologies as the evoSPEED1.3, the design is really what sets them apart.

Marco Reus has never worn evoSPEED, he prefers the evoPOWER, but the company is hoping to have him as the face of the evoSPEED brand as they go forward.

He is currently out with an injury so we won’t see him in the new boots until January.

Bundesliga Adopts Goal Line Technology

2014-12-06T08:00:00.000-05:00

It is official; the Bundesliga will have goal line technology for the start of the 2015 season.

The decision was made this past Thursday in Frankfurt in a meeting that had the presence of eighteen clubs. Fifteen clubs voted in favor while three voted against.

The German Football League confirmed that FIFA’s licensed vendor, Hawk Eye, will be the company responsible for installing the new technology in time for the start of the 2015-16 season. Hawk Eye is the company currently being used in the English Premier League.

The new goal line technology will consist of fourteen cameras, which are attached beneath the stadium’s roof to monitor the goal line. Once the ball crosses the line a signal will be transmitted to the referee’s receiver who will know immediately that the ball indeed crossed the goal line.

DFL President, Reinhard Rauball believes that this is the logical next step for German football.

Following a successful implementation of the system during the 2014 World Cup and now in the Premier League in England, this is the logical step for Germany. I expect other leagues to follow in the very near future.

Hamburger SV's Maxi Beister and His Amazing 'SNAXCUP' Invention

2014-12-04T20:00:00.000-05:00

It's perhaps an unfair stereotype, but most footballers aren't credited for their intelligence away from the pitch, nor are they well regarded for the variety of their hobbies away from football.

Whereas older pros occupied themselves with a round of golf or a day at the racetrack, most of today's footballers prefer plunking themselves down in front of a Playstation after training or perhaps going shopping for another expensive car.

Maxi Beister, a 24 year old midfielder for Hamburger SV, has put his spare time to better use recently by securing a European patent for an invention he calls 'The Snaxcup'.

The Snaxcup, which could really catch on with fast food lovers out there, is a disposal container that is designed to allow you to hold a drink and food in one hand.

It consists of a cup base, which you would hold onto, and a top tray you could fill with popcorn or chips for example. The cup also has a straw poking through the food tray so you could wash down your unhealthy snack with some ice cold Diet Pepsi.
The former German U21 international dreamed up this device after struggling to produce his movie ticket, due to his hands being full, on a trip to the cinema three years ago.

He will be testing a prototype of the Snaxcup during Hamburg's game against Mainz on Sunday.

If this product takes off, and it just may as it's really not that terrible of an idea, Beister could be set for a career in snack container development once his football days come to an end.

Dortmund's Walking Wounded

2014-11-25T20:00:00.000-05:00

Jurgen Klopp's Borussia Dortmund, suffering through one of their worst season in years, were dealt a terrible blow on Sunday during their draw with Bundesliga newcomers Paderborn when Marco Reus went down with an injury.

The German international will miss the remainder of 2014 and adds to the list of woes for the struggling side.

The Dortmund playmaker, whose campaign has already been blighted with injury, picked up his latest knock when Paderborn's Marvin Bakalorz clattered into him during Saturday's 2-2 draw.

Jurgen Klopp bemoaned his side's performance in the second half and although he said he respected the work being done in Paderborn he was obviously annoyed with the nature of Reus' injury.

This Wednesday, Dortmund take on Arsenal in the Champions League with Marco Reus, Sven Bender, Sokratis Papastathopoulos, Jakub Blaszczykowski, Mats Hummels and Nuri Sahin all either missing through injury or doubtful to start.

With Dortmund sitting on a perfect twelve points from four matches in Group D, the concern may be more about turning around their league form and climbing out of fifteenth spot than their Champions League progress.

One possible piece of good news emerged on Monday though when Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho waved away suggestions that the West London side will be pursuing Reus' signature.

"We don't want Marco Reus," he said Monday. "The market is closed and the player belongs to Borussia. We have top players in this position.

"We are not interested, not at all."

Now whether or not Bayern Munich will come calling next summer is another matter entirely.