Erik Meijer sees the Bundesliga’s high-scoring trend as a consequence of stronger attacking recruitment rather than a simple decline in defending. The former striker welcomes the added quality, although he would have liked to see more German players among the arrivals.
Attackers raise the level
Meijer says he prefers matches with plenty of goals. As an analyst, he would rather highlight positive football than catalogue defensive mistakes.
- He links the volume of Bundesliga goals to the improved standard of attacking players.
- Clubs with spending power are increasingly putting money into creative, forward-thinking signings.
- That attacking depth makes defensive work harder without necessarily meaning defensive units have become weaker.
- The Bundesliga has gained financial strength compared with several other leading European leagues, though it remains well behind the Premier League’s scale.
Meijer believes the league can now make offensive investments at a higher level than in the past. He regards that increase in quality as a positive development, with one reservation: “I would have liked more of those players to have been German.”
Meijer’s view from the forward line
The Dutchman knows German football from his own playing career. He scored 57 goals across 260 appearances in the first and second divisions for Bayer Uerdingen, Bayer Leverkusen, Alemannia Aachen and Hamburger SV.
He now works as a television expert and regularly assesses the way goals are created. His view is that Bundesliga forwards would still score regularly against Premier League defences.
Premier League money remains different
Meijer noted that England’s financial advantage cannot be fully closed. A promoted club in the Premier League can have a budget close to, or even above, that of Germany’s seventh-ranked club.
- Players can therefore choose a less prominent English club over a stronger option elsewhere.
- European competition does not always reflect that financial gap on the pitch.
- Bundesliga attacking quality should not be dismissed simply because the Premier League operates in another financial bracket.
Different plans at each end of the table
Meijer expects wealthier German clubs to continue investing in attack over the longer term. Teams expecting a relegation battle are more likely to reinforce their defensive structure.
He does not anticipate a broad tactical swing towards caution in the immediate future. The leading attackers will remain at their clubs, and coaches are unlikely to abandon their established approach during an international break. In Meijer’s view, those coaches have already selected their style because it best fits their squads and their need to keep results coming.
