Fourteen players from Bundesliga 2 were nominated, including a midfield dynamo from Schalke and a young newcomer from Hertha Berlin. But the rising star of Germany’s second division, according to fans, is Kaiserslautern’s Naatan Skyttä.
The Finland international finished around 300 votes ahead of Schalke’s ever-present Soufiane El-Faouzi in our Shooting Star vote. Behind them were the likes of Hertha starlet Kennet Eichhorn and Karlsruhe’s Lilian Egloff.
Skyttä, 23, joined the Red Devils in the summer from French second-division side Littoral Dunkerque and has featured in all 11 league matches so far, starting every one since Matchday 5.
Skyttä was on target against Karlsruhe. – IMAGO/Ralf Brueck
Usually operating as a No.10, Skyttä has developed a serious goal threat and is Kaiserslautern’s second-highest scorer with four goals, behind striker Ivan Prtajin on eight.
Only two midfielders anywhere in the league have scored more, and the Finn has been particularly efficient, converting four of his 15 shots in his Bundesliga 2 career so far, needing fewer than four attempts per goal.
At Lautern, only Prtajin has a higher expected goals value than Skyttä (2.5), and only the striker surpasses him in shot efficiency (+1.5). And there’s another telling statistic: when Skyttä scores, Kaiserslautern win. He has scored in four matches – and the Red Devils won all four.
Watch: The top 5 goals from Matchday 12
Skyttä has covered an impressive average of 11.8 kilometres per 90 minutes and recorded a top speed of 33.2 km/h. He has occasionally drifted out of games (averaging only 43 touches per 90 minutes), but despite his adventurous playing style, he has posted an 85 percent pass completion rate.
Furthermore, he has won a solid 50 percent of his challenges and has taken his fair share of knocks: only two Kaiserslautern players have been fouled more than his 17 times. By contrast, he has committed only four fouls himself, although he has already picked up three yellow cards.
>>> Skyttä’s Lautern host Holstein Kiel on Sunday
