Bayern legend Elber on Lewandowski, Aubameyang and top scorer's race
Having scored 92 goals in 169 Bundesliga games for Bayern Munich between 1997 and 2003, helping them win four Bundesliga titles and the UEFA Champions League, among others, Giovane Elber enjoys legendary status in Germany's top flight and the Bavarian capital.
Who better, then, to analyse the gripping race shaping up for this season's top scorer's crown between Robert Lewandowski, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Anthony Modeste?
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bundesliga.com caught up with the former Brazil striker, who was the Bundesliga's top scorer in 2002/03 with 21 goals, for this thoughts…
bundesliga.com: Giovane Elber, the battle for the Torjägerkanone is very tight at present. What have you you make of it?
Giovane Elber: As has been the case in the last few years, Lewandowski and Aubameyang are leading the way. It's a close race. Something happens every weekend. It's become a real rarity for neither of them to score on any given matchday. I'm excited to see who will edge ahead in the end. I'm sure it'll go right down to the wire.
Watch: The race for the top scorer's cannon is hotting up:
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bundesliga.com: Do you think this season's top scorer will break the 30-goal barrier?
Elber: If both players keep going as they have been – and they're both capable of doing so – then I think they probably will go over 30. Lewandowski managed that last season, but Aubameyang's got what it takes too.
bundesliga.com: What do you make of Aubameyang's development?
Elber: He's come on tremendously. He's scoring more goals each year because he keeps getting better. That's no accident. Even last season he was very good, but he seems to have gone up a level this year. He's still as deadly in front of goal even though important players [Mats Hummels, Ilkay Gündogan and Henrkh Mkhitaryan] left Borussia Dortmund last summer. Thomas Tuchel himself has said that Dortmund can't achieve their aims without Aubameyang.
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bundesliga.com: Lewandowski is still scoring regularly too…
Elber: His greatest strength is undoubtedly his consistency. Obviously he has world-class team-mates at Bayern who create chances for him, but he's a complete striker. He can control the ball instantly and he's just as important playing with his back to goal, because he's got technical ability that only a few players have and he's also very intelligent.
bundesliga.com: Do you think Cologne striker Anthony Modeste, who has two goals fewer with 17, still has a chance of finishing as top scorer?
Elber: Modeste's development has been great too. In the past few seasons he always started well before going through a goal drought, but now it really looks like he's matured. You can see that in his consistency. Nevertheless, I think either Lewandowski or Aubameyang will be top scorer because they're both at clubs that function better than Cologne. I can still see Modeste getting 25 goals, though, which would be an outstanding haul.
Click here for the full 2016/17 top scorers' chart
bundesliga.com: So you don't think Timo Werner (13 goals), Vedad Ibisevic, Sandro Wagner, Serge Gnabry or Javier 'Chicharito' Hernandez (all on ten goals) will win the Torjägerkanone this season?
Elber: I can't see that happening. It's too late in the season already and because there's just no stopping Lewandowski and Aubameyang. Still, you can see that Timo Werner has improved fantastically.