Charting the Rise of Bayern Munich Midfielder Sebastian Rode

This Christmas will be a merry one for Sebastian Rode, who can look back at the 2014 calendar year satisfied with the huge strides he's made in his career.

The 24-year-old took a big risk in leaving the safety of Eintracht Frankfurt for a hugely competitive Bayern Munich squad, but despite a serious knee injury earlier in the year, progressed steadily and took his chances to make an impression on coach Pep Guardiola in the first round of the 2014-15 season.

When Rode joined Bayern, he looked to have insurmountable competition for a starting spot in midfield. Toni Kroos, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Thiago Alcantara and Javi Martinez were all proven, top-caliber players who presumably would begin the season ahead of him in the pecking order.

Natural full-backs, Philipp Lahm and David Alaba were also possibilities in midfield. And Bayern also had a gem in youngster Pierre Hojbjerg, whom CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge (per the official Bayern website) insisted was a key part of his team, ruling out a sale or loan of the player in May.

At first, it looked as though Rode—a player of talent but, at 23, limited potential still waiting to be tapped—might go the way of Jan Kirchhoff, Nils Petersen and Jan Schlaudraff: playing the role of full-time bench-warmer before being unceremoniously offloaded within a year or less. However, fortune would favor Rode.

In the summer, Kroos was sold to Real Madrid with a star (but an aging one who has much less time remaining at a high level than his predecessor) in Xabi Alonso taking his place. Martinez, Schweinsteiger and Thaigo all sustained serious injuries that saw them miss all or most of the fall campaign, and Hojbjerg was not given the playing time that may have been expected following Rummenigge's decision to keep him at Bayern.

Rode was still struggling to earn playing time behind Lahm and Alaba, but both defensive men sustained serious injuries late in the fall campaign and Guardiola had little choice but to play Rode. Despite initially only being given a few minutes off the bench, the newcomer responded brilliantly and was given an increasing role in the latter stages of the fall campaign.

By now he's scored two goals and assisted four more, giving him a surprisingly high rate of direct involvement in goals: On average, he finds the net or plays the final ball every 113 minutes (per Transfermarkt). Not bad for a defensive player.

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It's not just Rode's goal return, which is bound to decrease to a more expected rate sooner or later, that has been impressive. He's proven himself a true box-to-box midfielder, capable of influencing the game at all depths of the pitch.

To this end, there's something very Schweinsteiger-esque about him. And German source TZ even speculated recently that Rode may sooner or later be called up to Joachim Low's senior national team.

Rode's development may be surprising to those who saw in him another Kirchhoff, but those who followed him in his early years may think otherwise.

As a youngster, Rode was highly rated. Despite progressing through the youth ranks of Kickers Offenbach, who sank from the 2. Bundesliga to the 3. Liga before his departure in 2010, he was brought into the German youth national team at under-18 to under-20 levels prior to his move to Frankfurt.

Rode was beginning to make a name for himself before he joined Frankfurt, but in September of 2009, he sustained a cruciate ligament rupture that all but ended his final season at Offenbach within a few weeks of the campaign's start.

The youngster returned to action at the end of March, 2010, but barely two months after his transfer to Frankfurt, he suffered another major knee injury. This time, cartilage damage kept Rode sidelined until after the winter break.

When he came back, Rode was relied upon regularly, but shifted between midfield and center-back. He played the full 90 minutes in only three games in the spring of 2011. But when football resumed the next season, he was fully relied upon.

Rode's star burned brighter and brighter as he became a starter for the German under-21 national team, and finally the youngster was snapped up by Bayern. With all things considered, he should be fully satisfied with his performance in the first round.

Despite how far he's come, Rode still faces some serious challenges ahead. He has huge competition for playing time in the coming years, and although Alonso, Lahm and Schweinsteiger are all the wrong side of 30, there are plenty of options at Bayern who are younger and could stay for the majority of the next decade or longer.

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Another big concern in Rode's career going forward is the state of his knees. A history of three major injuries by the age of 24 does not exactly inspire confidence in their strength, and although he did well when used this fall, the condition of his knees hasn't truly been tested. Right now, it's uncertain how Rode would fare if used regularly throughout a long campaign.

Still, the one big factor that Rode has in his favor, one that shouldn't be underestimated, is his drive and motivation. Whenever he sets foot on the pitch, he exudes a burning desire to succeed, the kind that more often than not breeds success and at the very least brings the best out of him.

At this point, he's one of the most likeable players in the Bayern team and has the widespread support of the Munich faithful. The odds may be steep, but it would be hard to bet against him.

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