´Class´ Werner tipped to become one of the best by Leipzig team-mate

RB Leipzig star Timo Werner has the potential to become one of the world’s best strikers, according to his team-mate Dayot Upamecano.

Having signed from relegated Stuttgart ahead of last season, Werner went on to score 21 Bundesliga goals for promoted Leipzig, as they stunned the league and finished second only to Bayern Munich.

His impressive form at club level earned Werner his first Germany call-up in March and he has since gone on to make himself something of a mainstay, scoring three times in four appearances to help Die Mannschaft secure the Confederations Cup earlier this year.

Still only 21, Werner already looks a certainty to go to the 2018 World Cup having started the Bundesliga season with six goals in nine appearances and Upamecano, who joined from sister club Red Bull Salzburg in January, believes the sky is the limit for the striker.

18 – Timo Werner is the first player aged 21 to score 18+ goals in a single BL campaign since Dieter Müller in 1974/75 (24 goals). Youth. pic.twitter.com/Fi5cl462Uy

— OptaFranz (@OptaFranz) May 6, 2017

Speaking Bundesliga.com, the 19-year-old Frenchman said: “I’m happy we’re on the same team because he’s difficult for opposition players to stop.

“His pace, his exceptional technique and finishing – he’s a class striker. He definitely has the potential to become one of the best strikers in the world.”

Upamecano has continued to look a promising prospect following his move from Austria, even though he initially found the adaptation quite difficult.

But in Ralph Hasenhuttl, he has a coach who is willing to trust in his abilities and Upamecano says he is now working to repay that faith.

“It wasn’t easy for me at Leipzig to begin with,” he said. “Being in a new club, in a new environment, at such a young age.

“But I always gave everything in training and the coach soon put his trust in me. I’ve tried to repay it. As a coach, he’s tactically very astute and trusts young players.”