The Monday Bulletin: Köln silence Guirassy, Germany's new No.9s & troubled Frankfurt and Union Berlin

Hello and welcome to the very first edition of the Gegenpressing Monday Bulletin. This newsletter will hopefully prove to be a vital source of information for any serious Bundesliga fan, as we look to round up some of the most intriguing aspects of the matchday thanks to snippets of insight from our writers. Let us know what you think of the format and the talking points in the comments section below. 

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Füllkrug vs Beier – An unlikely battle of German no.9s

• Hoffenheim against Dortmund was an unexpected battle of German-born no.9s. Stefan wrote about young Maximilian Beier in his newsletter last week. The 20-year-old has already scored four goals in six Bundesliga games this season, and with Julian Nagelsmann watching on in Sinsheim, don’t be surprised to see Beier called up sooner rather than later. Beier is the future, but two Dortmund veterans stole the headlines. Right under the eyes of the Bundestrainer, Niclas Füllkrug scored the opener for Dortmund. With Sebastien Haller struggling, Füllkrug might quickly establish himself as Dortmund’s number-one striker, which should also set him up nicely for the upcoming European Championships in Germany next summer. After that, the future might be very well Füllkrug vs Beier for Germany, an enticing prospect for a nation desperate for a productive no.9. (Manuel Veth)

Stuttgart show strength in depth as Guirassy draws a blank

• For the first time this season, Serhou Guirassy failed to score or even provide an assist for high-flying VfB Stuttgart, as Köln kept a noticeably stringent eye on him. Centreback Jeff Chabot made his intentions clear by getting right up close to him in the opening minutes, and again on the half-hour mark, while captain Florian Kainz put in a crunching tackle as the Guinean attempted to hold the ball up. Guirassy did see a first-half header glance off the bar, but Sebastian Hoeneß’ team has other weapons. On Saturday, it was Brighton loanee Deniz Undav who came off the bench in the second half to score twice, set up first by Chris Führich (his fourth assist of the season) and then by fellow substitute Silas. At the other end, Alexander Nübel demonstrated his quality with a stunning save from Dejan Ljubicic. With sporting director Fabian Wohlgemuth speaking after the game about it was time for the Swabians to “get off the rocking horse” after years of ups and downs, Stuttgart proved that they’re far from a one-trick pony. (Matt Ford) 

Toothless Frankfurt prove to be the perfect opponents for Wolfsburg 

• Wolfsburg weren’t outstanding on Saturday, but they certainly didn’t need to be to beat this Eintracht Frankfurt side. Two goals from Jonas Wind were enough to dispose of an Eagles team that defended well in parts and even showed some initiative in the opposing half at times, but it was another performance that leaves many questioning whether Dino Toppmöller is the right coach for this side. Most would forgive Frankfurt’s misgivings in front of goal due to the firepower they lost in the summer window, but the uber-defensive, route-one style of football that the new head coach has the Eagles playing has offered up just four goals in six games and certainly doesn’t seem to be getting the best out of new attacking signings like Farès Chaïbi or Hugo Larsson. You know things aren’t going to plan when Mario Götze is the player getting sent off for clumsy tackles in an attempt to stop a counter attack. Frankfurt have the fewest number of shots from open play in the entire Bundesliga this season and if things don’t change soon they’ll start tumbling down the league table too. (Stefan Bienkowski)

Is Thomas Tuchel in trouble after RB Leipzig draw?

• What do we make of Bayern Munich at this stage? The draw against RB Leipzig showed two very different faces. Leipzig were all over Bayern the first 45 minutes and were perhaps a bit unlucky to be only up by two goals. In the second half, Thomas Tuchel brought on Mathys Tel for Kingsley Coman and Raphael Guerreiro for Leon Goretzka. Those changes provided Bayern with more structure in the attack and in midfield. But let’s be honest. It was mostly the hand penalty and Marco Rose perhaps making changes a bit too late. Leipzig looked exhausted halfway through the second half, and it wasn’t until Rose brought on fresh legs that they started to roll with the punches and came close to a winner themselves on a few occasions after Benjamin Sesko entered the pitch. It wasn’t Tuchel’s tactics but circumstances that changed the game. Overall, there are still some structural weaknesses in this team. What’s worse, Tuchel seems to be almost uninterested in directly addressing those issues with the players available. His solution? Spend money this winter. Indeed, it would be easy for him to simply sign a no.6 and a right-back. But the truth is also that there were some obvious flaws in his tactical setup to start the match. The backline was some hybrid monster of a back-three and a back-four that was easily picked apart by Leipzig. (Manuel Veth)

Things will get worse before they get better for Union Berlin

• Things are looking pretty grim for Union Berlin right now. They wrapped up a dreadful September with five defeats from five after scoring just one goal, following a 1-0 loss to Heidenheim on Saturday. And what perhaps worries fans of the Köpenick side even more is that their next four games are against Braga, Borussia Dortmund, Stuttgart and Napoli. Things are probably going to get a lot worse for Urs Fischer’s side before they get better. But not all hope is lost in the German capital. With all due respect to Heidenheim - and they have been impressive since promotion - Union had the lion’s share of chances on Saturday, finishing the game with an xG of 2.94 and a bitter taste in their mouth for not claiming at least a point. This echoes similar misfortune against Hoffenheim and Wolfsburg, where Union matched or surpassed their foe’s for chances created but simply weren’t able to convert them. So far this season Stuttgart and Bayer Leverkusen are averaging just 1.51 and 2.57 more shots per game than Union but have scored 10 and 11 goals more respectively than the Berlin club. Following Saturday’s defeat, captain Christopher Trimmel chalked up the poor form to a lack of “self-confidence”, most likely referring to the lack of converted chances in front of goal. That breakthrough will come eventually, but Union fans may have to hold on a little longer for better results. (Stefan Bienkowski)