Return of the Rhinesiders: Kroos puts Leverkusen back on top

“He’s been the man of the season so far. I've always had the feeling that he could be the next Michael Ballack and he's certainly living up the expectations.”

So said Beckenbauer to German tabloid Bild. The subject of Der Kaiser’s uncharacteristic excitement? 19-year-old playmaker, Toni Kroos, of German ‘winter champions’ Bayer Leverkusen – for now.

For Kroos – a wonderfully gifted midfielder with a footballing maturity which belies his years – belongs, long-term, to Beckenbauer’s Bayern Munich. Having spent last year on loan at the BayArena, Kroos was granted a second year by the Rhine due to the congested nature of Bayern’s squad. Leverkusen impressed many observers last year under the aegis of Bruno Labbadia (now coaching Hamburg), but lacked consistency and finished up 9^th in a tightly-packed Bundesliga table; also losing the DFB Cup final. This term, the club once dubbed ‘Neverkusen’ for their innate ability to fluff their lines in league title-fights, cup finals and even the odd Champions League final, have led the similarly close-run title race for months.

And they’ve done it in some style. Unbeaten through the entire campaign (nine wins and eight draws so far), Leverkusen have taken on all-comers with their youthful squad, of which set-piece specialist Kroos has grown to become the creative fulcrum, supported ably by their stand-in captain Sami Hyypiä and led by veteran coach Jupp Heynckes. A multiple Bundesliga champion with Bayern in the late 80s and, more recently, Champions League winner at Real Madrid, who, as is the form, sacked him by way of celebration, Heynckes had been left on the managerial scrapheap after a string of failures at home and abroad.

Last season, however, the former Borussia Mönchengladbach striker enjoyed a renaissance in a successful cameo appearance at Bayern following Jürgen Klinsmann’s brief but chaotic spell in charge. Nevertheless, at the birth of the 2009-10 season, few expected any such heroics at (relatively) little Leverkusen. His winning blend of youth and experience has, so far, defied expectation; holding Louis Van Gaal’s resurgent Bayern, Schalke (coached by last year’s champion coach Felix Magath) and Hamburg at bay.

24-year-old goalkeeper René Adler is the impeccable last line of defence, ahead of whom Hyppiä (now in the record books as the man with the most unbeaten minutes played in Bundesliga history) has been an unsurpassable rock – restored to his early Liverpool pomp, away from the unforgiving pace of the Premier League. Bombarding full-back Gonzalo Castro (22) starred for Germany’s under-21s last summer and already has five caps in what is something of a problem position for the senior side.

A regular fixture in der Nationalmannschaft, Simon Rolfes is captain and Leverkusen’s destructive box-to-box force in the centre of the pitch, though currently talented Stefan Reinartz (20) deputises for his injured skipper. Lars Bender (twin of Dortmund’s Sven, also 20) is another exciting prospect in the engine room, while Chile's Arturo Vidal adds bite in the tackle.

Creativity comes primarily from Kroos (6 goals and 3 assists in 17 games), Swiss wide-man Tranquillo Barnetta and the currently injured Renato Augusto, signed from Flamengo in 2008. Turkish youngster Buruk Kaplan is on the verge of a first-team breakthrough and offers a sweet left foot – which he used to great effect in preserving the team’s unbeaten record with a late, deflected goal in the entertaining 2-2 draw with bottom club Hertha Berlin.

While no.9 Patrick Helmes (24 goals in his first season at the club last year) has sat out the remarkable run because of a torn cruciate ligament, his strike-partner Stefan Kießling has filled in the gaps skilfully. The tall, blond forward finds the net on a regular basis; showing great touch and balance (...for a big man) and intelligent interplay with his current partner, Swiss striker Eren Derdiyok.

All in all, it’s a group packed with promise, energy and an almost tangible determination. The perfect platform, perhaps, for a talent like Kroos to flourish – particularly in a World Cup year. Despite his tender age, his biggest fan Beckenbauer “wouldn’t be really surprised” if Jogi Löw takes him to South Africa next summer. To learn from the master, Michael Ballack, in such a rarefied atmosphere would be an ideal step-up in Kroos’ development before he inevitably returns to Bayern – who will have a significant creative vacancy following Franck Ribéry’s impending departure.

Curiously, Leverkusen’s most marketable stars, both ‘keeper Adler (born in Leipzig) and Kroos (Greifswald), are that all too rare occurrence in the modern era – successful footballers born east of the Berlin wall. They will surely be aiming to emulate the towering achievements of two fellow GDR-born Leverkusen graduates: Bernd Schneider and Ballack.

That pair, along with Zé Roberto and Emerson, formed the midfield hub of the last nearly-great Leverkusen side of the early noughties. Kroos, whose brilliant double strike against Mönchengladbach last weekend ensured his team would go into the winter break ahead of the pack, has the prodigious talent to help hold off the challenge of his parent club and finally bring some glory to the success-starved Rhinesiders.

Landon's landing - but where?

Landon Donovan. Remember him?

Long before the emergence of Freddy Adu (remember him?) the LA Galaxy forward was vaunted as the great hope of US football. He was destined, it was said, to be the first American to crack the higher echelons of the European game. Nearly a decade since he first surfaced, for a number of reasons, it simply hasn’t happened.

Even at the relatively tender age of 26, it seems like Donovan has been around for an age. Starting out at Bayer Leverkusen as a 16-year-old, the diminutive Californian found it hard to adapt to life on the banks of the Rhine. While his club career in Europe singularly failed to launch, Donovan impressed at the 1999 U-17 World Championship, winning the Golden Ball awarded to the tournament’s star player.

A return to the States in 2001, initially on loan, came as a welcome respite from the disillusionment engendered by his failure to impact on the Leverkusen first team. At MLS club San Jose Earthquakes, the young striker found his feet in the professional game – and spectacularly so. Goals, assists and headlines galore saw Donovan established as the biggest ‘name’ in US football.

Naturally, Leverkusen monitored his progress closely and, impressed by his development, invited their great young American hope back to the club in the summer of 2004. Again, Donovan’s impression on the Bundesliga was negligible – no goals and only two starts – and pretty soon he was on a flight home to the safe sanctuary of MLS; this time with Los Angeles Galaxy.

During the past four years, Donovan has cemented his place as the biggest fish in what is, to be frank, a footballing backwater. Galaxy may have endured more downs than ups of late – they finished rock bottom of the ‘regular season’ table – but Donovan finished as the League’s top scorer with 20 goals in 25 games; striking up an intuitive understanding with David Beckham in the process.

But, with the recent departures of Alexi Lalas, Ruud Gullit and now Milan-bound Becks symptomatic of a faltering franchise, Donovan has decided to cut and run.

Donovan clearly needs a new challenge on the back of his most productive season to date in La-La Land. He’s done and won everything in MLS and is already the all-time leading scorer for the US (with 37 goals).

“Nothing against our guys (in MLS), but in a lot of situations where you're making 12, 15 thousand a year, you're worrying about other things other than training the next day or getting ready for the game,” he said recently.

His conclusion: “Mentally, I'm ready (to play in Europe) and I wasn't ready before in any way. I want to make the most of that. I've only got one career and I want to make sure that I give myself a chance.''

So, Donovan wants to swap the LA beach-house for a luxury penthouse apartment in one of Europe’s myriad cultural hotspots. Or Middlesbrough.

But where should he go?

Despite the forward’s previous travails in the Bundesliga with Leverkusen, there have been strong rumours linking him with ex-California resident Jurgen Klinsmann’s Bayern Munich. Donovan, though, has plainly intimated he’d prefer a shot at England or Spain this time around.

“I'd love to play in the Premiership or in Spain, I think that would be incredible,” Donovan said, earlier this week.

“I watch games every weekend and I think I could contribute on a lot of teams.”

He added, when asked about a move to England: “It would be a much easier fit than most places, for sure,”

“In my situation I can't be super-picky, but if it’s the right offer with the right team...there's a lot of ifs.”

He’s right; there are a lot of ‘ifs’. But, available at what will surely be a reasonable price tag – given the MLS’ centrally-controlled contract policy – Donovan represents a gamble worth taking for many clubs.

The smart money would probably be on the US no.10 rocking up at ‘Fulhamerica’ sometime during the January transfer window. Several other teams in the mid-to-lower reaches of the Premier League could certainly be interested in Donovan’s services too. A player of craft and significant natural ability, he would considerably augment the attacking options of many an English side.

Whichever club Donovan does end up at, they might well be glad they were brave enough to give the Californian star another shot at European success.