There were shocks in almost every single game as the Bundesliga resumed service after the winter break at the weekend. Bayern Munich only won by one, Stuttgart came from behind to win, Ingolstadt won a game, Frankfurt stunned Wolfsburg, Werder Bremen thrashed Schalke in their own back yard and Hoffenheim held Bayer Leverkusen in Gameweek 18.
In fact, Borussia Dortmund were the only side that really resumed service as normal. Their 3-1 win away to Gladbach kept them to within eight points of league leaders Bayern and it was a performance that was good enough to earn no fewer than four players a spot in the first Bundesliga Team of the Week for 2016.
All three goalscorers from their win earned a place in the team, with Ilkay Gundogan (9.08) and Henrikh Mkhitaryan (9.53) among two of the top three rated players for the weekend. Marco Reus opened the scoring for Thomas Tuchel’s men and those three are joined in the Team of the Week by central defender Mats Hummels, who completed 11 interceptions against Gladbach.
However, Alexander Meier edged all three out of the honour of being the highest rated player for the gameweek. The 33-year-old veteran was on hand to fire Frankfurt to a thrilling 3-2 victory over Wolfsburg, with his hat-trick goal coming deep into stoppage time.
Meier has now scored five goals in his last three outings and has picked up the WhoScored man of the match award in each of the last two. He scored with all three of his shots on goal, won three aerial duels and created one chance for a teammate.
For more stats on Alexander Meier, click here to visit his WhoScored player page
