I really don't know what to say here... You're completelly biased and obviously lack even a shred of objectivity when it comes to Werder. Sorry mate, that's the way it is.
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[GER] Bundesliga 2007/2008 (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter sateeh
- Start date
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I'm just triying to be optimistic. The 2nd half obviously was a catastrophe, but everybody knows that. All of our players were standing in Bayern's half and noone felt the need to go back when we lost the ball. But afterall I see a developement which might be a little difficult for you since you are surely not watching all of Werder's games.
Yes, I am biased, but that's my point of view. I see it through Werder's eyes and I saw a game that could have easily gone out differently if this strange penalty hadn't been given. At the beginning of the 2nd half, Werder had to open up, and got punished by clever Bayern. Werder made terrible mistakes, but like I mentioned, I was quite confident with the 1st half.
And it was also a much better game by Werder than the 1-4 in the Ligapokal.
Yes, I am biased, but that's my point of view. I see it through Werder's eyes and I saw a game that could have easily gone out differently if this strange penalty hadn't been given. At the beginning of the 2nd half, Werder had to open up, and got punished by clever Bayern. Werder made terrible mistakes, but like I mentioned, I was quite confident with the 1st half.
And it was also a much better game by Werder than the 1-4 in the Ligapokal.
Dortmund thrash Werder at home 3-0 
Werder look really bad and their lack of investment over the summer is coming back to haunt like it will over the season imo
match report
DORTMUND, September 14 (Bundesliga) - Borussia Dortmund marched into second place in the Bundesliga with a convincing victory over Werder Bremen on Friday night.
All three goals came in the first half for the home side, who clinched their third straight league win courtesy of a brace from Mladen Petric and a Diego Klimowicz strike.
The visitors' misery was completed 10 minutes from time when Leon Andreasen was given his marching orders.
The crushing defeat leaves Bremen floundering in mid-table, and deals a damaging blow to morale ahead of their Champions League debut against Real Madrid on Tuesday.
After overcoming a difficult start to the season, both teams were in upbeat mood coming into the Friday night clash. One side's confidence was to receive a further boost, while the other's was to be destroyed.
And it was the hosts who enjoyed their night with Klimowicz finding the back of the net after 21 minutes, only for play to be called back for offside.
It mattered little, though, as Petric opened the scoring a minute later. Dede and Jakub Blaszczykowski combined to move the ball from left to right and then back into the middle for Petric to slide in at the far post.
Eight minutes later, Klimowicz timed his run to perfection to meet Blaszczykowski's throughball. He still had work to do to beat Tim Wiese, and he did so exquisitely by curling his shot into the top corner.
That put paid to Bremen's best spell of the game and two minutes later the contest was over.
Dede was again the provider with a long pass from the left bisecting the Bremen defence and reaching Petric, who let the ball bounce once before sweeping past Wiese on the volley.
Bremen's defence looked woeful and, in the second half, it was a matter of trying to avoid embarrassment for Thomas Schaaf's side.
They achieved that only in one respect, in that they did not concede again, but Andreasen did not leave the field with too much credit 10 minutes from time.
He was sent off for kicking out at Marc-Andre Kruska, ending a dismal evening for Bremen, but a glorious one for the majority of the 77,000 fans, who saw their side return to the upper regions of the Bundesliga for the first time in almost five years.
Werder look really bad and their lack of investment over the summer is coming back to haunt like it will over the season imo
match report
DORTMUND, September 14 (Bundesliga) - Borussia Dortmund marched into second place in the Bundesliga with a convincing victory over Werder Bremen on Friday night.
All three goals came in the first half for the home side, who clinched their third straight league win courtesy of a brace from Mladen Petric and a Diego Klimowicz strike.
The visitors' misery was completed 10 minutes from time when Leon Andreasen was given his marching orders.
The crushing defeat leaves Bremen floundering in mid-table, and deals a damaging blow to morale ahead of their Champions League debut against Real Madrid on Tuesday.
After overcoming a difficult start to the season, both teams were in upbeat mood coming into the Friday night clash. One side's confidence was to receive a further boost, while the other's was to be destroyed.
And it was the hosts who enjoyed their night with Klimowicz finding the back of the net after 21 minutes, only for play to be called back for offside.
It mattered little, though, as Petric opened the scoring a minute later. Dede and Jakub Blaszczykowski combined to move the ball from left to right and then back into the middle for Petric to slide in at the far post.
Eight minutes later, Klimowicz timed his run to perfection to meet Blaszczykowski's throughball. He still had work to do to beat Tim Wiese, and he did so exquisitely by curling his shot into the top corner.
That put paid to Bremen's best spell of the game and two minutes later the contest was over.
Dede was again the provider with a long pass from the left bisecting the Bremen defence and reaching Petric, who let the ball bounce once before sweeping past Wiese on the volley.
Bremen's defence looked woeful and, in the second half, it was a matter of trying to avoid embarrassment for Thomas Schaaf's side.
They achieved that only in one respect, in that they did not concede again, but Andreasen did not leave the field with too much credit 10 minutes from time.
He was sent off for kicking out at Marc-Andre Kruska, ending a dismal evening for Bremen, but a glorious one for the majority of the 77,000 fans, who saw their side return to the upper regions of the Bundesliga for the first time in almost five years.
Dortmund thrash Werder at home 3-0
Werder look really bad and their lack of investment over the summer is coming back to haunt like it will over the season imo
match report
DORTMUND, September 14 (Bundesliga) - Borussia Dortmund marched into second place in the Bundesliga with a convincing victory over Werder Bremen on Friday night.
All three goals came in the first half for the home side, who clinched their third straight league win courtesy of a brace from Mladen Petric and a Diego Klimowicz strike.
The visitors' misery was completed 10 minutes from time when Leon Andreasen was given his marching orders.
The crushing defeat leaves Bremen floundering in mid-table, and deals a damaging blow to morale ahead of their Champions League debut against Real Madrid on Tuesday.
After overcoming a difficult start to the season, both teams were in upbeat mood coming into the Friday night clash. One side's confidence was to receive a further boost, while the other's was to be destroyed.
And it was the hosts who enjoyed their night with Klimowicz finding the back of the net after 21 minutes, only for play to be called back for offside.
It mattered little, though, as Petric opened the scoring a minute later. Dede and Jakub Blaszczykowski combined to move the ball from left to right and then back into the middle for Petric to slide in at the far post.
Eight minutes later, Klimowicz timed his run to perfection to meet Blaszczykowski's throughball. He still had work to do to beat Tim Wiese, and he did so exquisitely by curling his shot into the top corner.
That put paid to Bremen's best spell of the game and two minutes later the contest was over.
Dede was again the provider with a long pass from the left bisecting the Bremen defence and reaching Petric, who let the ball bounce once before sweeping past Wiese on the volley.
Bremen's defence looked woeful and, in the second half, it was a matter of trying to avoid embarrassment for Thomas Schaaf's side.
They achieved that only in one respect, in that they did not concede again, but Andreasen did not leave the field with too much credit 10 minutes from time.
He was sent off for kicking out at Marc-Andre Kruska, ending a dismal evening for Bremen, but a glorious one for the majority of the 77,000 fans, who saw their side return to the upper regions of the Bundesliga for the first time in almost five years.
Werder look really bad and their lack of investment over the summer is coming back to haunt like it will over the season imo
match report
DORTMUND, September 14 (Bundesliga) - Borussia Dortmund marched into second place in the Bundesliga with a convincing victory over Werder Bremen on Friday night.
All three goals came in the first half for the home side, who clinched their third straight league win courtesy of a brace from Mladen Petric and a Diego Klimowicz strike.
The visitors' misery was completed 10 minutes from time when Leon Andreasen was given his marching orders.
The crushing defeat leaves Bremen floundering in mid-table, and deals a damaging blow to morale ahead of their Champions League debut against Real Madrid on Tuesday.
After overcoming a difficult start to the season, both teams were in upbeat mood coming into the Friday night clash. One side's confidence was to receive a further boost, while the other's was to be destroyed.
And it was the hosts who enjoyed their night with Klimowicz finding the back of the net after 21 minutes, only for play to be called back for offside.
It mattered little, though, as Petric opened the scoring a minute later. Dede and Jakub Blaszczykowski combined to move the ball from left to right and then back into the middle for Petric to slide in at the far post.
Eight minutes later, Klimowicz timed his run to perfection to meet Blaszczykowski's throughball. He still had work to do to beat Tim Wiese, and he did so exquisitely by curling his shot into the top corner.
That put paid to Bremen's best spell of the game and two minutes later the contest was over.
Dede was again the provider with a long pass from the left bisecting the Bremen defence and reaching Petric, who let the ball bounce once before sweeping past Wiese on the volley.
Bremen's defence looked woeful and, in the second half, it was a matter of trying to avoid embarrassment for Thomas Schaaf's side.
They achieved that only in one respect, in that they did not concede again, but Andreasen did not leave the field with too much credit 10 minutes from time.
He was sent off for kicking out at Marc-Andre Kruska, ending a dismal evening for Bremen, but a glorious one for the majority of the 77,000 fans, who saw their side return to the upper regions of the Bundesliga for the first time in almost five years.
We are missing Frings so much. Naldo had a terrible night and so did Diego. The red card was a joke. There should have been red cards for both Kuba and Naldo, but not for Andreasen.
After we were 0-3 behind, Schaaf did not take the opportunity to open up and play more offensively, maybe with three strikers. He brought a DM for an OM and later Rosenberg for Almeida instead of strenghtening the attack.
The only players with acceptable performances for Werder were Jensen, Baumann, Pasanen, Mertesacker and Wiese.
its good to see Mertesaker playing well although 3-0 and hes a defender say a lot.
Tonight Bayern and Schalke with the Bavarians on top form, especially as some of their players having a good international break.Schweinstiger springs into mind as he had two very good games for Germany.
I expect Bayern to thrash the Blues, but those big games are different as we saw the Bayern-Hamburg games two weeks ago
Tonight Bayern and Schalke with the Bavarians on top form, especially as some of their players having a good international break.Schweinstiger springs into mind as he had two very good games for Germany.
I expect Bayern to thrash the Blues, but those big games are different as we saw the Bayern-Hamburg games two weeks ago
Bremen 4-1 Stuttgart
1-0 Almeida (3.)
2-0 Almeida (4.) (fastest two goals in a row in the Bundesliga ever)
2-1 Gomez (12.)
3-1 Sanogo (later)
4-1 Diego (89.)
What a performance. An exciting game with good chances for both sides. A regular goal by Hilbert was disallowed in the 2nd half. Many fouls by Stuttgart, it was obvious noone of their players could stop Diego without a foul. Hilbert should have been sent off after numerous fouls which had justified a 2nd yellow card for him.
Schalke Ease To Victory Over Bielefeld
In a rather one-sided affair, Schalke cruised to an easy 3-0 victory over high flying Arminia Bielefeld. Kevin Kuranyi gave the Königsblauen the lead, before goals from Gerald Asamoah and Rafinha sealed the win in the second half.
Schalke 3 Arminia Bielefeld 0
Mirko Slomka made only one change from the side beaten by Valencia, with Bajramovic coming in to replace Halil Altintop.
The first quarter of an hour saw Bielefeld forced onto the back foot, but Schalke were far too wasteful in possession to threaten them. The home side should have taken the lead after 15 minutes when a powerful Kuranyi header was well saved by Hain in the Bielefeld goal. The follow up from Heiko Westermann hit the post.
The game then descended into a private duel between Kuranyi and the Bielefeld keeper. Hain saved a dangerous long effort from the German international on 18 minutes, before being forced to watch another headed effort fly narrowly wide five minutes later.
Two minutes later and Kuranyi did manage the breakthrough. Pander was allowed to cross unhindered from the left, and the aerially strong Kuranyi out jumped Rau to head the ball past the defenceless keeper.
Bielefeld showed little reaction to going behind and were finding it difficult to get themselves in the game. Asamoah had a great chance to double the home side’s lead on 32 minutes but the Ghanaian saw his shot cleared off the line by Kauf.
The second half began just as the first had ended with Schalke in the ascendancy. Hain was playing a blinder, but the rest of his team mates were not matching his performance. The confusion in their ranks was punished on 54 minutes with a second goal for Schalke.
Defenders Mijatovic and Langkamp failed to deal with a long ball from Neuer, and Asamoah was on hand to capitalise.
In the 65th minute the game was decided when referee Perl awarded a penalty to Mirko Slomka’s team. Langkamp’s shove on Asamoah was deemed punishable with a spot-kick. Rafinha converted to make it 3-0.
In the end Schalke could, and should have won by more as The visitors were hanging on at the end in an effort to avoid a more humiliating result.
1-0 Kuranyi (24)
2-0 Asamoah (54)
3-0 Rafinha (65pen)
Schalke: Neuer, Pander (Rodriguez), Rafinha, Bordon, Westermann, Ernst, Jones, Bajramovic, Rakitic, Asamoah (Lovenkrands), Kuranyi (Altintop)
Bielefeld: Hain, Schuler, Mijatovic, Langkamp, Rau, Kucera, Masmanidis (Kamper), Kauf, Bohme (Nkosi), Eigler, Wichniarek (Kampantais)
goal.com
In a rather one-sided affair, Schalke cruised to an easy 3-0 victory over high flying Arminia Bielefeld. Kevin Kuranyi gave the Königsblauen the lead, before goals from Gerald Asamoah and Rafinha sealed the win in the second half.
Schalke 3 Arminia Bielefeld 0
Mirko Slomka made only one change from the side beaten by Valencia, with Bajramovic coming in to replace Halil Altintop.
The first quarter of an hour saw Bielefeld forced onto the back foot, but Schalke were far too wasteful in possession to threaten them. The home side should have taken the lead after 15 minutes when a powerful Kuranyi header was well saved by Hain in the Bielefeld goal. The follow up from Heiko Westermann hit the post.
The game then descended into a private duel between Kuranyi and the Bielefeld keeper. Hain saved a dangerous long effort from the German international on 18 minutes, before being forced to watch another headed effort fly narrowly wide five minutes later.
Two minutes later and Kuranyi did manage the breakthrough. Pander was allowed to cross unhindered from the left, and the aerially strong Kuranyi out jumped Rau to head the ball past the defenceless keeper.
Bielefeld showed little reaction to going behind and were finding it difficult to get themselves in the game. Asamoah had a great chance to double the home side’s lead on 32 minutes but the Ghanaian saw his shot cleared off the line by Kauf.
The second half began just as the first had ended with Schalke in the ascendancy. Hain was playing a blinder, but the rest of his team mates were not matching his performance. The confusion in their ranks was punished on 54 minutes with a second goal for Schalke.
Defenders Mijatovic and Langkamp failed to deal with a long ball from Neuer, and Asamoah was on hand to capitalise.
In the 65th minute the game was decided when referee Perl awarded a penalty to Mirko Slomka’s team. Langkamp’s shove on Asamoah was deemed punishable with a spot-kick. Rafinha converted to make it 3-0.
In the end Schalke could, and should have won by more as The visitors were hanging on at the end in an effort to avoid a more humiliating result.
1-0 Kuranyi (24)
2-0 Asamoah (54)
3-0 Rafinha (65pen)
Schalke: Neuer, Pander (Rodriguez), Rafinha, Bordon, Westermann, Ernst, Jones, Bajramovic, Rakitic, Asamoah (Lovenkrands), Kuranyi (Altintop)
Bielefeld: Hain, Schuler, Mijatovic, Langkamp, Rau, Kucera, Masmanidis (Kamper), Kauf, Bohme (Nkosi), Eigler, Wichniarek (Kampantais)
goal.com
Diego was great today. And Petric too. He scored 2 goals again. 
Forza Petric. I wonder when will Klasnic make his return?
Forza Petric. I wonder when will Klasnic make his return?
Werder Bremen striker Ivan Klasnic has been given the all-clear to resume his football career following a lengthy lay off.
It had been feared the Croatia international may have to give up the game after suffering kidney failure back in January.
However, after a successful transplant from his father, doctors have given the 27-year-old a clean bill of health and the green light to return to action.
Klasnic revealed he never considered retiring and is determined to make a return to competitive action as soon as possible.
"According to the doctors I'm in good health again" Klasnic stated.
"I never considered giving up and I'm convinced I'll return to my original level.
"Of course I have to be careful with my blood tests but I feel good. It's like being born again."
The news will come as a huge boost to Thomas Schaaf, whose side has struggled so far this season following the loss of Miroslav Klose and injuries to other key players.
Bundesliga tonight:
Wolfsburg - Werder Bremen
Dortmund - Hamburg
Berlin - Rostock
Duisburg - Schalke
All games will start at 20:00 CET.
Watch out for streams here.
Wolfsburg - Werder Bremen
Dortmund - Hamburg
Berlin - Rostock
Duisburg - Schalke
All games will start at 20:00 CET.
Watch out for streams here.
Bundesliga Title Race: Contenders
And Pretenders
Following one of the most exhilarating Bundesliga campaigns in years, normal service has resumed. Bayern are marching towards the German title and it’s hard to see who can stop them.
Pundits the world over will tell you the same thing: the mark of a championship-winning side is having the ability to play below your best and yet still win games.
When - like Bayern yesterday - you can produce an average display away from home and still triumph 4-1, your opponents should be very afraid. Six games in and it’s difficult to imagine anyone other than Oliver Kahn lifting the Bundesliga shield come May.
Fans of German football – neutrals and followers of other clubs alike – reveled in the problems besetting the Rekordmeister last season.
With Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund – the other two German sides to have made the Champions League final in the past decade – also well out of the frame, last year’s three-way title challenge was a refreshing one.
As one journalist in England put it, “this was something like Newcastle, Tottenham and Aston Villa battling it out for the Premiership.” Stuttgart took the honours, but the red beast from Bavaria had been angered.
The 2006/07 season was truly exceptional, but Bayern Munich’s summer revamp aimed to ensure that it remained just that: an exception.
Spending over €70m (around as much as the rest of the league put together!) on world class players such as Miroslav Klose, Franck Ribéry and Luca Toni this summer, Bayern have once again established themselves as a cut above the rest. Concerns over coach Otmar Hitzfeld’s ability to transform these megastars into a cohesive unit have subsided.
Following his highly impressive start to the campaign, Ribéry looked decidedly out of sorts at Karlsruhe yesterday. Kahn and Lucio will be less than satisfied with their performances too, while Bastian Schweinsteiger hasn’t yet hit top form for this club this season. And yet still Bayern thrashed their opponents.
Hamit Altintop was superb in midfield, while strike duo Klose and Toni were clinical, the latter despite lacking match fitness. Where inspiration from key protagonists is not forthcoming, others are ready and able to step up to the plate.
This sets Bayern apart from their challengers, who rely too heavily on the likes of Diego or Rafael Van der Vaart. Some will say that winning by such a margin against a newly promoted side is no great feat.
Yet in their previous home match Karlsruher SC had enjoyed a 1-0 victory over champions Stuttgart, a side who – in stark contrast to Bayern – have started poorly and have yet to earn a single point away from home this season. Trailing their rivals by seven points already, VfB seem unlikely to be challenging Bayern this time around.
The side tipped by many to run Bayern close - Werder Bremen - have had a similarly indifferent start. When Diego is off form, the team fails to perform, as witnessed during their 3-0 thrashing by Dortmund. But Werder’s inferiority to Bayern was established in week 2 as they were comprehensively dismantled 4-0.
Star striker Klose was sold (and to their major rival) and not adequately replaced, while the squad has been ravaged by injuries to key players like Frings, Borowski, Fritz and Klasnic.
Bremen, like the rest, are unable to match the strength in depth of Hitzfeld’s squad. The victory in Bremen, along with the comfortable 3-0 win over Hannover 96 the following week, was proof of a new Bayern: the team had lost both of these fixtures last season.
Schalke’s chances of outgunning Bayern are similarly slim. They deservedly left the Allianz Arena with a point, but have already shown their inconsistency with frustrating draws against lesser sides. Having thrown away the Bundesliga title at the death back in May, the general consensus is that Mirko Slomka’s men remain chokers, the nearly men.
If Schalke couldn’t do the job last year then they won’t do it this time, whereas Bayern possess an established championship winning pedigree. Six games in and Munich’s three nearest challengers – Hertha BSC, Bayer Leverkusen and Eintracht Frankfurt - differ from recent years.
For the optimists this signals another potentially exciting season with new aspirants. For the pessimists these are underdogs merely enjoying a successful early spell before the inevitable happens and Bayern canter to victory. Bayern’s absence from the Champions League for the first time in over a decade will perhaps compound their domestic dominance.
The UEFA Cup offers little distraction from the league for management and players who believe the club belongs firmly in Europe’s elite class. The pressure on Bayern to succeed in Europe this year is considerably lower than at Schalke, Bremen or Stuttgart, who see progression beyond the group stages of the Champions League as vital for securing lucrative television money and attracting better players to their clubs next year.
No such problems for Bayern: their annual budget is, at €68m, comfortably the Bundesliga’s highest, dwarfing the sums second-placed Schalke (€48m) and third placed Stuttart (€38m) have at their disposal. As the transfer of Klose this summer – and those of Ballack, Lucio, Elber and others before – illustrates, this financial superiority has enabled Bayern to buy the chief threats from their main rivals.
Given this, the question should not be “who will win the Bundesliga this year”, but “how come Bayern don’t win it every year?” Those hoping for an exciting contest must hope that, as happened last time, the Rekordmeister somehow implodes.
Chris Williams, goal.com
And Pretenders
Following one of the most exhilarating Bundesliga campaigns in years, normal service has resumed. Bayern are marching towards the German title and it’s hard to see who can stop them.
Pundits the world over will tell you the same thing: the mark of a championship-winning side is having the ability to play below your best and yet still win games.
When - like Bayern yesterday - you can produce an average display away from home and still triumph 4-1, your opponents should be very afraid. Six games in and it’s difficult to imagine anyone other than Oliver Kahn lifting the Bundesliga shield come May.
Fans of German football – neutrals and followers of other clubs alike – reveled in the problems besetting the Rekordmeister last season.
With Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund – the other two German sides to have made the Champions League final in the past decade – also well out of the frame, last year’s three-way title challenge was a refreshing one.
As one journalist in England put it, “this was something like Newcastle, Tottenham and Aston Villa battling it out for the Premiership.” Stuttgart took the honours, but the red beast from Bavaria had been angered.
The 2006/07 season was truly exceptional, but Bayern Munich’s summer revamp aimed to ensure that it remained just that: an exception.
Spending over €70m (around as much as the rest of the league put together!) on world class players such as Miroslav Klose, Franck Ribéry and Luca Toni this summer, Bayern have once again established themselves as a cut above the rest. Concerns over coach Otmar Hitzfeld’s ability to transform these megastars into a cohesive unit have subsided.
Following his highly impressive start to the campaign, Ribéry looked decidedly out of sorts at Karlsruhe yesterday. Kahn and Lucio will be less than satisfied with their performances too, while Bastian Schweinsteiger hasn’t yet hit top form for this club this season. And yet still Bayern thrashed their opponents.
Hamit Altintop was superb in midfield, while strike duo Klose and Toni were clinical, the latter despite lacking match fitness. Where inspiration from key protagonists is not forthcoming, others are ready and able to step up to the plate.
This sets Bayern apart from their challengers, who rely too heavily on the likes of Diego or Rafael Van der Vaart. Some will say that winning by such a margin against a newly promoted side is no great feat.
Yet in their previous home match Karlsruher SC had enjoyed a 1-0 victory over champions Stuttgart, a side who – in stark contrast to Bayern – have started poorly and have yet to earn a single point away from home this season. Trailing their rivals by seven points already, VfB seem unlikely to be challenging Bayern this time around.
The side tipped by many to run Bayern close - Werder Bremen - have had a similarly indifferent start. When Diego is off form, the team fails to perform, as witnessed during their 3-0 thrashing by Dortmund. But Werder’s inferiority to Bayern was established in week 2 as they were comprehensively dismantled 4-0.
Star striker Klose was sold (and to their major rival) and not adequately replaced, while the squad has been ravaged by injuries to key players like Frings, Borowski, Fritz and Klasnic.
Bremen, like the rest, are unable to match the strength in depth of Hitzfeld’s squad. The victory in Bremen, along with the comfortable 3-0 win over Hannover 96 the following week, was proof of a new Bayern: the team had lost both of these fixtures last season.
Schalke’s chances of outgunning Bayern are similarly slim. They deservedly left the Allianz Arena with a point, but have already shown their inconsistency with frustrating draws against lesser sides. Having thrown away the Bundesliga title at the death back in May, the general consensus is that Mirko Slomka’s men remain chokers, the nearly men.
If Schalke couldn’t do the job last year then they won’t do it this time, whereas Bayern possess an established championship winning pedigree. Six games in and Munich’s three nearest challengers – Hertha BSC, Bayer Leverkusen and Eintracht Frankfurt - differ from recent years.
For the optimists this signals another potentially exciting season with new aspirants. For the pessimists these are underdogs merely enjoying a successful early spell before the inevitable happens and Bayern canter to victory. Bayern’s absence from the Champions League for the first time in over a decade will perhaps compound their domestic dominance.
The UEFA Cup offers little distraction from the league for management and players who believe the club belongs firmly in Europe’s elite class. The pressure on Bayern to succeed in Europe this year is considerably lower than at Schalke, Bremen or Stuttgart, who see progression beyond the group stages of the Champions League as vital for securing lucrative television money and attracting better players to their clubs next year.
No such problems for Bayern: their annual budget is, at €68m, comfortably the Bundesliga’s highest, dwarfing the sums second-placed Schalke (€48m) and third placed Stuttart (€38m) have at their disposal. As the transfer of Klose this summer – and those of Ballack, Lucio, Elber and others before – illustrates, this financial superiority has enabled Bayern to buy the chief threats from their main rivals.
Given this, the question should not be “who will win the Bundesliga this year”, but “how come Bayern don’t win it every year?” Those hoping for an exciting contest must hope that, as happened last time, the Rekordmeister somehow implodes.
Chris Williams, goal.com
. You can see the limited possibilites on the pitch with all these players missing.