A lot of club around Europe and especially in the Premier League are targeting Bayer Leverkusen’s Julian Brandt at the moment. While Liverpool and Manchester City are particularly keen on the player, Chelsea were also linked with him in the past. Other clubs like Bayern Munich, Juventus and AC Milan are also monitoring him closely. Liverpool, with Klopp in charge, could well have the upper hand in trying to entice the youngster and considering the way they play, they won’t find it hard in trying to convince the lad. Schmidt’s pressing model, which was developed at Salzburg under Rangnick, is similar to that of Klopp’s and Brandt could fit in seamlessly.
The player spent his time during his youth days at SC Borgfeld and then FC Oberneuland before joining the youth academy of Wolfsburg. After making a considerable impact in his two years at Wolfsburg, where he scored 27 goals in 48 games in total, helping his side win the youth league, the winger was snapped up by Leverkusen in January 2014. Since his move he has already made 76 Bundesliga appearances for his club and has really caught the eye with his displays despite his young age.
Strengths
The 20-year old has great pace and is regarded as one of the speed demons capable of providing powerful runs in behind the defence. His technique allows him to use his pace more effectively as he makes the attacks to materialise with his skill and movement.
Brandt is also very versatile who is capable of playing anywhere in the attack. During his time at Wolfsburg, he was actually an orthodox number 10. Roger Schmidt converted him into an attacking wide player capable of playing on either side of the wing.
Standing at 6ft 1 in, the Brandt also has the physical attributes to contribute to his team in the set pieces. Still only 20, the most intriguing feature of the player though has to be his tactical maturity gained extensively playing under his current manager Schmidt.
Since the departure of Son Heung-Min, the winger has predominantly been used to control the left flank and is already regarded as one of the key players of his team which has resulted in a lot of game time and a chance to gather lots of experience.
Weaknesses
For Brandt, the main weakness is something very common of all the young wingers in the game, his defensive contribution. The reluctance to drop down and track his man back has led to the isolation of his fullback of which the opposition has made full use of on several occasions.
In fact, by his own admission, the winger needs to do a lot more in the defensive phase to claim a starting berth at any top club in Europe. The other area which he needs to work upon is his heading, which given his height needs to improve.
Verdict
Julian Brandt is certainly one of those players who can make a considerable difference despite his young age for a club. The youngster has the ability to make a mark in more challenging and competitive league, being ready to make a step up in his career.
Having the tactical maturity to use the conditions well, the winger is certainly a player to look out for the future with a very strong argument made already with his displays for Bayer Leverkusen over the last couple of seasons.
