Breel Embolo, Jonas Hofmann, Yann Sommer, Alassane Plea, Manu Koné and Nico Elvedi have all been nominated for October’s Player of the Month, as brought to you by Borussia and Cichon Personalmanagement. You can vote for your favorite in the FohlenApp now!
The Foals played five competitive fixtures in October, four in the Bundesliga and one in the DFB-Pokal. In those games we had four different players who were Man of the Match, in Breel Embolo, Jonas Hofmann, Yann Sommer and Alassane Plea, who are now up for Player of the Month – presented by Cichon Personalmanagement. You can also vote for Manu Koné or Nico Elvedi.
Breel Embolo was Man of the Match in two matches during October. In the 3-1 away win against VfL Wolfsburg on Bundesliga matchday nine, Embolo gave Borussia an early lead, before setting up Jonas Hofmann for the second goal with a lovely pass. It wasn’t only his goal and assist that marked out Embolo in that game. The Swiss international contested far more duels than anyone else on the pitch (45), completed a strong 77% of his passes and nine moments in the opposition penalty area. Embolo also stood out in the 5-0 cup win over FC Bayern München. He provided the assist for the first goal from Manu Koné, played a part in the attack for the second goal and the penalty for goal number three was given after he was fouled. In the second half Embolo scored twice himself.
Jonas Hofmann was given the Man of the Match award after the away game against VfB Stuttgart (1-1). The 29-year-old scored a great volley just before the break, but also had the most shots on goal (5), delivered the most crosses (9) and set up the most shooting opportunities for his teammates (8). With a distance of 12.4 kilometres, he also covered more distance than anyone else on the pitch. Goalkeeper Yann Sommer was voted Man of the Match for the 1-0 defeat at Hertha BSC. Despite losing, Sommer once again proved a safe pair of hands at the back and thwarted several chances for the hosts. The 32-year-old could do nothing about the decisive goal, however.
Alassane Plea was last in the starting eleven in the 1-0 defeat by Augsburg on 18th September. The Frenchman has been on the bench for five consecutive games, coming on four times. In the most recent Bundesliga home match against VfL Bochum (2-1), Plea was given another start, and it paid off. He scored the opener with a wonderful header and in the build-up to the second he gave the ball to Jonas Hofmann at the perfect moment to score. The fans rewarded this performance, voting Plea Man of the Match in the FohlenApp.
Manu Koné moved to Mönchengladbach from FC Toulouse in the summer. After just a few days at his new club, the 20-year-old Frenchman picked up a knee injury and was out for two months. After his Bundesliga debut for Borussia against BVB (1-0 win), Koné started every game in October, including the cup game against Bayern, in which Koné scored his first goal for the club. He also impressed as a tough-tackler with an eye for picking out his teammates with passes.
Following the 5-0 cup win against Bayern, sporting director Max Eberl heaped praise on both Embolo and Nico Elvedi. "Nico Elvedi did a fantastic job against Lewandowski," Eberl said after the match. Elvedi brought his typical calm nature into the game, delivering another impressive defensive performance while keeping Bayern's top goalscorer quiet.
Fans can vote now for their Player of the Month for October in the FohlenApp, with voting open until midnight on Thursday (4th November).
