Football is not always a beautiful game; sometimes bookings are necessary. Thankfully, we’re on hand to keep all these bookings straight. There are 34 distinct offences that the DFB considers bookable. In their honor I’ve written this paean to the punished:
We are here not to castigate but to celebrate these masters of misconduct, ballerinas of bookings, pashas of poorly-timed tackles,
[ed. note: This continues on for quite awhile with plenty of mixed metaphors and the odd off-color Madonna reference. In the interest of time, we resume now at the end]
great gurus of gratuitous violence.
Whew. Yes, it’s the return of the coveted Stefan “111 Yellow Cards in only 370 Bundesliga Games” Effenberg Memorial Trophy! 
<a href="http://www.bundesligatalk.com/german-indiscipline-the-bundesligas-most-booked/8/stefan-effenberg/" rel="attachment wp-att-14" title="Stefan Effenberg"> 
<div><figure class="external-image"><img src="http://epltalk.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/8/files/2008/06/effe4.jpg" alt="Stefan Effenberg" align="middle" hspace="15" vspace="15"></figure></div></a> 
<a href="http://www.bundesligatalk.com/german-indiscipline-the-bundesligas-most-booked/8" title="Bundesliga&apos;s Most Booked 2007/2008"> 
Last year</a>, as you might recall, the season ended with a clear victory by MSV Duisburg’s Mihai Tararache. Unfortunately he’s not on hand to defend his trophy, although he’s certainly competing for the 2. Bundesliga’s less prestigious Willi Landgraf Cup. His two fiercest rivals from last year (Mark van Bommel and Grafite) are, however, still around and off to an excellent start in this season’s campaign. One important note before looking at the table: the scoring system from last year has been changed to increasingly reward bad behavior: 1 pt for a yellow, 3 pts for the second yellow of a game, and 5 pts for a straight red to go along with the extended vacation away from the pitch.
3. Manuel Friedrich/Christian Fuchs, Leverkusen/Bochum, 4pts. 
While these two have done enough to separate themselves from the throng of 3 yellow carders behind them, they haven’t done enough otherwise. There’s not enough to go on this early in the season to allow me to really choose one over the other. Both had a single yellow before earning an early shower with two more yellows in a second game. At the moment they’re just placeholders on the podium, at least until things clear up. The two players ahead of them, however, have rightly earned their positions.
2. Mark van Bommel, Bayern, 4 pts. 
<a href="http://www.bundesligatalk.com/german-indiscipline-the-bundesligas-most-booked/8/mark-van-bommel/" rel="attachment wp-att-12" title="Mark Van Bommel"><div><figure class="external-image"><img src="http://epltalk.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/8/files/2008/06/van-bommel.jpg" alt="Mark Van Bommel" align="right" hspace="15" vspace="15"></figure></div></a>van Bommel gets the nod for second place ahead of Manuel Friedrich and Christian Fuchs for two reasons. First, his two yellows against Dortmund came in the span of 4 minutes. You have to admire such the dedication to his craft. He evinces it whenever he steps onto the field and right up until he’s sent off again. Second, if van Bommel didn’t play in the Bundesliga I don’t know if I’d have the heart to write up this particular column. He always manages to find a new way to both get a smile on my face and his name in the book. I have no doubt that he’ll be near the top of the table at the end of this season.
1. Fabian Ernst, Schalke, 6 pts. 
<a href="http://www.bundesligatalk.com/the-bundesligas-most-booked/87/fabian-ernst/" rel="attachment wp-att-88" title="Fabian Ernst"><div><figure class="external-image"><img src="http://epltalk.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/8/files/2008/09/27253.jpg" alt="Fabian Ernst" align="right" hspace="15" vspace="15"></figure></div></a>It could be no one else but Schalke’s midfielder, really. He opened his account with a yellow against his former club, Werder Bremen. But his crowning 3-game-suspension-worthy moment came last week in the Revierderby against Dortmund. His sloppy (some might call it reckless and dangerous) tackle against Kuba, only minutes after teammate Christian Pander was sent off with his second of the night, really allowed Dortmund to gain a well-deserved point. The challenge for Ernst, beyond how to spend his free time in the upcoming weeks, is how to keep himself on top of this table. Straight reds might be flashy and garner you lots of style points, but they also keep you out of commission for too long to be competitive.
Don’t be surprised to see the next edition of The Bundesliga’s Most Booked headed by someone who’s quietly been collecting a yellow every game or so. Consistent indiscipline is the ultimate key to success.

The Bundesliga’s Most Booked

The Bundesliga’s Most Booked - World Soccer Talk

<div><figure class="external-image"><img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/Said_Huseinovi%C4%87.jpg" alt="One to Watch" width="33%"></figure></div>
Undoubtedly, the minute I post this, Ronaldo will give up on Real Madrid and move to Hamburg, so forgive me for being premature. Let’s take a look, as the season begins, at the seven best signing so far this summer in the Bundesliga.

<ol>

<li>
Christian Fuchs (SV Mattersburg to Bochum)
 
Austria entered the Euros as a laughing stock. By the time they gallantly exited after the defeat to Germany, there was a lot to be excited about. Perhaps that excitement will have to be tempered until 2012, when the class of last year’s U20 semi-finalists have taken over the team, but already Prodl, Harnik and Ozcan have gravitated towards our favorite league. Fuchs will be the first to make an impact. While Prodl should eventually wrestle the CB position from Naldo after the Brazilian finally causes Marcel Koller a heart attack, Fuchs will slot in immediately. And with a midfield in dire need of a talisman, he could well take that spot with his attacking flair down the left flank. Will he be enough to keep the relegation battlers up? Hard to tell, but he will be on this again next year, if they don’t stay up.
</li>

<li>
Mikael Forssell (Birmingham to Hannover)

Hannover’s biggest issue is a forward line that wouldn’t bother most AYSO travel teams. Forssell is a proven goalscorer who should add bite to their midfield bottle. Also he could pair well with Mike Hanke, who has not thrived as the only threat for the continually improving Reds. 
</li>
<li>
Tim Borowski (Werder Bremen to Bayern Munich)

What to you do when part of your double pivot gets too old? Well when you’re FC Bayern, you take on a free player from your closest league rival. By securing the free transfer of German international Borowski (28) from Werder, Bayern gave themselves an upgrade in age and lateral move in ability from the Brazilian Ze Roberto (34) to partner Van Bommel in front of Schweinsteiger, Sosa, Altintop and Ribery. 
</li>

<li>
Mario Eggimann (Karlsruhe to Hannover)

I loved Eggimann last year. Everyone was so high on Hajnal as the reason for Karlsruhe’s success, and he definitely played his part; however, KSC’s great early run and subsequent survival was based on their outstanding defense, including the vastly underrated Markus Millar in goal and LB Christian Eichner. Eggimann will bring composure and organization to a team that flirted with a European spot last year. He is definitely an improvement over the likes of an ancient Tarnat in front of the solid Robert Enke.

</li>
<li>
Orlando Engelaar (Twente to Schalke) and Jefferson Farfan (PSV to Schalke)

Suddenly Rutten seems poised to run a very tidy 4-2-3-1 with the ball winning Fabian Ernst coupled with the slick passing Engelaar in the double pivot, behind an attack of Ivan Rakatic, Farfan and Jermaine Jones. With Kevin Kuranyi’s ability to play the holding forward, much like a Luca Toni or Dimitar Berbatov, these two signings make Schalke a decent bet to end their long run of bad luck. Farfan’s ability to spell Kuranyi will be an added bonus and Jones ability to play back in the double pivot will allow the likes of Ze Roberto, PPA (Poor People’s Altintop) and Streit to slot in and provide depth through three competitions. This is now quite a versatile team.

</li>
<li>
Cristian Zaccardo and Andrea Barzagli (Palermo to Wolfsburg)

With the addition of former Italian RB Zaccardo and Italian CB Barzagli, Felix Magath is making one of the strongest defenses in the Bundesliga even stronger. Forget Barzagli’s howler against the Netherlands. This is one of Italy’s best center halves and he immediately becomes one of the best in the Bundesliga. It was quite a coup for Wolfsburg to land these two from Palermo, so there are few teams that have as much buzz coming into the season as Wolfsburg. If Marcelinho can make it through one more year, they could compete for a Champion’s League spot this year.

</li>
<li>
Renato Augusto (Flamenco to Bayer Leverkusen)

Bayer are right on the cusp. They have a collection of young talent that rivals any club with Adler, Barnetta, Castro, Kiessling, Vidal and Rolfes. But one of their biggest issues is the creeping age of talisman and playmaker Bernd Schneider. By picking up the next Brazilian wonder in Augusto, they look to be moving beyond Schneider and combining the creativity of this U20 international with the steady influence of Rolfes and the sharp wing play of Barnetta. If he is free from injury, he may well take the Werkself back to the Champion’s League. He will be fun to watch no matter how Leverkusen progress as a team.

</li>
</ol>

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and one to watch: Said Husejinovic (FK Sloboda Tuzla to Werder)

He isn’t going to make an impact at first, but I can’t believe how excited I am to see this wunderkind play. With Diego throwing his toys out with the pram, perhaps he will get time early to slot into the #10 role. By the end of the season we will be comparing the Bosnian to Ivan Rakatic.
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Did I miss anyone? Please comment on who you think deserves a mention on this list. Is it Hajnal to BVB? Is it Pitroipa to HSV? Let’s hear who I missed, because undoubtedly I will have missed some good ones.
&nbsp;

The Set: Best Transfers

The Set: Best Transfers - World Soccer Talk

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The Bundesliga’s Most Booked

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The Set: Best Transfers