29. Mario Mandzukic
Also earning his CaughtOffside 50 spot thanks to a fine debut season with Bayern Munich, the Croatian international performed the seemingly impossible task of displacing Mario Gomez with the minimum of fuss.
Gomez was intended to be the main man last term, having scored 41 goals in the previous campaign, but Mandzukic had impressed so much during Euro 2012 that he was given his chance in the starting line up, which he grabbed with both hands.
Now he has pushed Gomez out of the club entirely as he has become their main man in the lone striker role, commanding a starting spot across all competitions, and bagging some important goals against the likes of Arsenal and Juventus in the process.
However, it wasn’t just his goals that proved key. Mandzukic’s tireless running and defending from the attack were a crucial cog in Bayern’s pressing system, as seen especially by his outstanding man-marking of Juventus’ Andrea Pirlo during their quarter final clash.
BAYERN MUNICH
Games: 40
Goals: 22
Assists: 4
CROATIA
Games: 9
Goals: 3
Assists: 3
HONOURS: Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal, Champions League, DFL-Supercup