In EA FC 24, you can select your personal Team of the Year (TOTY) starting Monday, January 8. The list of all nominees is already official. We will present all Bundesliga players who are on the candidate lists.
What is the TOTY? The TOTY includes the players who, in the opinion of the community, have shown the strongest performances on the football pitch. Especially fans of the Bundesliga are happy when the stars of their favorite clubs appear on the list.
We will look at all Bundesliga stars below and try to justify the nominations.
These Bundesliga stars are nominated for the TOTY
Goalkeepers + Defense:
Gregor Kobel (GK) – Borussia Dortmund: The Dortmund player was undoubtedly one of the outstanding performers in 2023. Many games were decided in favor of BVB, primarily thanks to the strong support of the Swiss. He kept a clean sheet 11 times in the Bundesliga, averaged 3 saves per game, and conceded only one goal per match on average.
Alejandro Grimaldo (LB) – Bayer Leverkusen: One of the best, if not the best free transfer of the past summer. The strong left winger has already collected 12 points (7 goals, 5 assists) in 16 games this season. Even in the second half of the 22/23 season, still playing for Benfica, Grimaldo impressed with strong performances.
Min Jae Kim (CB) – FC Bayern Munich: The South Korean had a fantastic season with Napoli and quickly became the defensive leader for Bayern this season. He usually appears very composed. Minor positioning errors can often be mitigated by his tremendous speed.
Mats Hummels (CB) – Borussia Dortmund: Few would have expected such consistency from Mats Hummels at the international level. In the current season, Hummels has risen again to the defensive leader and shines with excellent positioning, well-timed tackles, and smart build-up play, as always.
Jeremie Frimpong (RB) – Bayer Leverkusen: The lightning-fast right winger is a very invigorating element for the offense. Frimpong has already shined this and last season with multiple goals and assists. Under coach Xabi Alonso, the Dutchman is becoming more stable defensively as well.
Midfield:
Granit Xhaka (CDM) – Bayer Leverkusen: Xhaka is the thinker and playmaker in midfield and can especially bring his experience into the game perfectly. He is not afraid to do the “dirty work” for his teammates and is one of the aggressive leaders in the central midfield. Due to his strong season with FC Arsenal last season, he is rightfully a candidate for the TOTY.
Jamal Musiala (CM) – FC Bayern: The German dribbler is the promise for the future in the German national team and already a man for important moments at FC Bayern. Even if he cannot always perform consistently, he can still deliver outstanding actions even on an average day. He combines unique technique with tremendous speed.
Julian Brandt (CM) – Borussia Dortmund: After the departure of Bellingham, Julian Brandt has become the sole offensive strategist and the link between defense and attack. The Dortmund player, especially in the second half of last season, played a major role in Dortmund’s comeback, which almost led to the championship title. In a currently average season for BVB, the German is among the better players.
Vincenzo Grifo (LM) – SC Freiburg: The personification of set-piece danger. Whether precise crosses, powerful penalties, or irresistible direct free-kick goals, Grifo has everything in his repertoire. He has been a constant performer for Freiburg for years and has deserved the nomination for the TOTY due to his impressive second half of the season.
Jonas Hofmann (RM) – Bayer Leverkusen: “Mister Reliable” almost always knows how to convince. The versatile midfielder shines on the field with high football intelligence, cleverly moves into dangerous areas, and can set up his teammates with accurate passes when he is not searching for a finish himself. In his new home Leverkusen, Hofmann is also among the absolute key players.
Leroy Sané (RM) – FC Bayern: The change of coaches from Nagelsmann to Tuchel was critically observed by many experts in Germany, but since this season, a clear winner of the change has emerged. In the first half of the season, one could see perhaps the best Sané there has ever been. Speed dribbles, dangerous finishes, and a sense of the right pass at the right moment were continuously provided by the German national player. In 15 games, Sané has already contributed 16 points (8 goals, 8 assists).
Florian Wirtz (CAM) – Bayer Leverkusen: Many footballers need a long time to return to their previous performance level after serious injuries. Florian Wirtz seems to be an exception to this rule. On the contrary: Since his return from a cruciate ligament tear, Wirtz has been playing better than ever and is the difference-maker in offense (12 points).
Attack
Loïs Openda (ST) – RB Leipzig: Those who thought that the step from Ligue 1 to a top Bundesliga team was too big have been proven wrong by the extremely fast Belgian. Together with new signing Xavi Simons, Openda shines in the offense at Leipzig and has already scored double-digit goals in the Bundesliga and assisted additional ones.
Serhou Guirassy (ST) – VfB Stuttgart: Guirassy’s meteoric rise has not gone unnoticed by EA Sports. “Goalrassy” scored in nearly every Bundesliga match before an injury, sometimes even multiple times. In the goalscoring leaderboard, he currently ranks just behind Harry Kane with 17 goals.
Harry Kane (ST) – FC Bayern: Some doubted that Kane could maintain his goal ratio outside the Premier League. After 16 games, he has proven his critics wrong and leads the Bundesliga scoring list. Kane has scored 21 goals and provided 5 assists in 15 games. Even in the first half of the year on a weak Tottenham team, he was the standout player and scored many goals.
Honorable Mentions from the Bundesliga:
Below, we have listed the players who could have also been nominated but did not make it to the nomination list:
Matthijs de Ligt (CB) – FC Bayern: For a long time last season, de Ligt was the standout player in defense, if not the entire pitch. He was even able to help his teammates win games with a few goals. Unfortunately, the Dutchman has been struggling with injuries for some time and has not been able to show much of his strong form from last season.
Joshua Kimmich (CDM) – FC Bayern: In the otherwise disastrous last season for Bayern, Kimmich, along with Jamal Musiala and Matthijs de Ligt, was the only real constant in his team. Even though Kimmich is criticized from time to time, his smart passes and his determination to win are an important factor for the Munich team. His non-nomination is therefore somewhat surprising.
Xavi Simons (CAM) – RB Leipzig: The Dutch counterpart to Musiala. Simons broke through last season at PSV Eindhoven. He has continued to maintain strong performances in his new home Leipzig and is one of the shooting stars of the current season. His absence from the TOTY selection can only be attributed to the surplus in midfield.
Exequiel Palacios (CM) – Bayer Leverkusen: Already in the second half of last season, Palacios demonstrated incredible passing strength and aggression in key matches. This season, he is among the best midfielders in the Bundesliga. If he continues to perform like this, he should at least be nominated for the TOTY next year.
Niclas Füllkrug (ST) – Borussia Dortmund: Last season’s top scorer has had a bit of a dip this season, largely due to the overall mixed performance of Dortmund. Füllkrug has not managed to impress in 2023 and remains excluded from the TOTY nominations.
That brings us to the end of the Bundesliga leaks for the TOTY nominations. We are interested in your opinion. Which player do you think is unfairly nominated? Which player is missing from the list? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.
If you want to prepare for the TOTY with packs or strong players, feel free to try out the Weekend League with its new rewards.
