Boateng named Germany's Footballer of the Year

Germany's football writers are in a defensive mood, and understandably so, as Bayern Munich centre-half Jerome Boateng was named Footballer of the Year Sunday ahead of a slew of celebrated world-class attackers.

On the heels of a domestic double with the Bavarian giant, Boateng beat out teammates Thomas Muller and Robert Lewandoski for the award handed out by German football magazine, kicker, and it wasn't even close.

Not bad for a player who made just 19 Bundesliga appearances last season because of injury.

"It's hard to believe - this gap is also surprising for me," Boateng told kicker, courtesy of ESPN FC. "I can hardly describe what is going through my head. Of course I am incredibly proud to have been able to achieve such a thing."

Boateng, 27, nabbed 163 votes to Muller's 95 and Lewandowski's 90. Hard not to blame the former Manchester City defender for his bewilderment in winning an award that is typically reserved for attacking players.

The last defender to take home the tribute was Borussia Dortmund's Jurgen Kohler in 1997, and besides Manuel Neuer's two accolades in 2011 and 2014, the list of recent winners is attack-heavy. Former Wolfsburg whiz Kevin De Bruyne won last year, while Arjen Robben, Marco Reus, Mario Gomez and Miroslav Klose have all won the award over the past decade.

The honour, which is based on a poll among the nation's football writers, was first introduced in 1960, when Hamburg striker Uwe Seeler took the award. Past honourees resemble a who's who of German football legends with the likes of Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Muller and Lothar Matthaus having all won the award in their celebrated careers.