The Bundesliga kicks-off on Friday with the clash between champions Stuttgart and runners-up Schalke. However the question on everyone’s lips is: “Can anyone stop Bayern Munich?” Goal.com will bring you all the best action and latest news throughout the coming season. Mathew Burt sets the scene by taking a look at the title contenders.
After one of the most exciting title races in years, it was Stuttgart who finished Bundesliga champions. What looked to finally be Schalke’s championship was taken from them at the last moment for a second time.
This year the usual suspects will be in the hunt to lift the Bundesliga title, but overwhelming favourites are Bayern Munich after their €70 million spending spree. However the other clubs will be looking to make things difficult for the Bavarians.
For the bosses at
Bayern Munich, not winning the Bundesliga is unthinkable. The target this season is to win the league, the Cup and the UEFA Cup. This should be quite within the grasp of Ottmar Hitzfeld’s stellar squad.
Eight new arrivals have given Bayern a squad which is the envy of many European clubs. Miroslav Klose, Luca Toni and Frank Ribéry are the highest profile arrivals at the Allianz Arena, but Hamit Altintop, Jose Ernesto Sosa Marcell Jansen and Zé Roberto will all bring an extra dimension to the team. Scoring goals should not be a problem, the question just remains as to whether Bayern can tighten up defensively and pick up more points away from home.
Ottmar Hitzfeld, who is currently only contracted to continue until the end of this season, will have to use all his experience if he is to keep all his players happy. Ahead of the European Championships internationals such as Bastian Schweinsteiger and Lukas Podolski are going to want plenty of playing time in order to make sure they are included in Joachim Löw’s final squad.
Last season’s champions
Stuttgart will relish the fact that they are seen as underdogs again this time around. Nobody was tipping them this time last year, but the Swabians, under the guidance of Armin Veh, sneaked up on the outside to pip Schalke at the last minute.
The loss of influential keeper Timo Hildebrand has been softened by the arrival of Raphael Schäfer from Cup winners Nürnberg, and despite interest from Juventus, Stuttgart have managed to hold on to defensive lynch-pin and captain Fernando Meira. Armin Veh has strengthened the squad with the signing of midfielder Yildiray Bastürk, defender Gledson, and strikers Ewerthon and Ciprian Marica.
The challenge for Stuttgart will be to cope with the extra burden of the Champions League added to the pressure which comes with being champions.
Schalke who were top of the league and champions elect for 12 weeks towards the end of the season will want to immediately put their disappointment behind them and finally secure that elusive Bundesliga title. Two losses in local derbies against Bochum and Dortmund undid all the good work of the season and allowed Stuttgart to overtake the ‘Königsblauen’ at the summit.
Mirko Slomka’s men will have an immediate chance for revenge when they meet Stuttgart in the opening game of the new season. Having missed out on the title and having lost influential players such as Hamit Altintop and Lincoln, there has been criticism of the lack of transfer activity at the Auf Schalke Arena. A move for Ghana’s Stephen Appiah failed due to financial constraints.
Ivan Rakitic has arrived from FC Basel to take up an attacking role, but it remains to be seen how quickly he will settle in the Bundesliga. Heiko Westermann and Jermaine Jones are the other major newcomers, but neither have set the Schalke faithful’s hearts racing. Last season may have been the Ruhr clubs best chance to win the league.
After much promise the season ended rather disappointingly for
Werder Bremen. Their championship challenge faltered at the tail end of the season and a semi-final defeat in the UEFA Cup at the hands of Espanyol was a bitter pill to swallow.
However Werder won many fans along the way with their brand of attractive attacking football. They finished the season as the league’s top goalscorers with 76 goals. Miroslav Klose scored 13, while revelation of the season Diego also chipped in with 13. It remains to be seen how the squad copes with the defection of Klose to rivals Bayern.
Thomas Schaaf has signed Carlos Alberto as an additional attacking option for a club record €7.8 million, but he is not a direct replacement for Klose. Markus Rosenberg showed promise last year and Aaron Hunt gave indications that he is ready to make an impact on the Bundesliga. Hugo Almeida and the returning Ivan Klasnic will also be needed to fire in the goals if Werder are to challenge Bayern this season.
A huge bonus for Werder was the decision of Torsten Frings to reject the overtures of Juventus and commit his future to the Weser Stadion club.
Outside of the top four, it will be up to
Bayer Leverkusen,
Hamburg and
Borussia Dortmund to lead the way in pushing into the higher reaches of the table. Leverkusen have signed last season’s top-scorer Theofanis Gekas and have also added quality to their side with the acquisition of Lukas Sinkiewicz, Arturo Vidal and Manuel Friedrich in defence. Trainer Michael Skibbe will be hoping Bernd Schneider can reproduce his sparkling form from last season to keep Bayer in the top six.
Hamburg have done well to hold on to Rafael van der Vaart in what will surely be his last season. The major summer capture for HSV has been that of Mohamed Zidan from Mainz. The Egyptian really made people take note of him last season with 13 goals. With quality players like van der Vaart, Kompany, Sorin, and Zidan, Hamburg will be looking to improve on last term’s seventh place finish and make a return to the Champions League.
Sleeping giants Borussia Dortmund seem to have found the right coach in Thomas Doll and will be looking to give their passionate supporters something to shout about. The loss of Metzelder is a serious blow and their defence looks rather old with the aquisition of Kovac from Juventus. However if Alex Frei and Diego Klimowicz can fire in the goals and Mladen Petric can settle quickly then expect Dortmund to improve.
Cup winners
Nürnberg have lost goalkeeper Raphael Schäfer to Stuttgart, but have signed the dangerous Greek striker Angelos Charisteas from Feyenoord to give them another attacking option. The arrival of Zvjezdan Misimovic from Bochum is a boost for their midfield. Coach Hans Meyer will need veteran Thomas Galasek and defender Andreas Wolf to reproduce their consistent form of last season.
Bochum will do well to repeat their more than respectable eighth place finish. Whether Stanislav Sestak can adequately replace Gekas is a doubt. Coach Marcel Koller called Gekas his ‘life insurance’ last season. Bochum will be hoping that that their life in the top flight will not be endangered this season.
Perennial under-achievers
Hertha Berlin have done nothing in the transfer market to suggest an improvement on last year. All does not appear well in the Hertha camp, with the banishment of Van Burik and the losses of Kevin-Prince Boateng and Bastürk. New coach Lucien Favre may wish he’d stayed with FC Zurich.
Energie Cottbus under the tutelage of Petrick Sander were one of the surprise packages last season. Promoted but favourites to face relegation they secured their Bundesliga status with some ease. However the loss of McKenna, Radu, and Munteanu will see them struggle to avoid the dreaded ‘second season syndrome’.
Hannover,
Arminia Bielefeld, and
Eintracht Frankfurt will all be battling it out for mid-table security. Hannover will welcome the goals of new signing Mike Hanke. The loss of defender Heiko Westermann for Bielefeld will be a blow they need to recover from quickly.
VfL Wolfsburg under Felix Magath will surely improve although talk of pushing for the Champions League seems rather ambitious.
Newly promoted
Hansa Rostock,
Karlsruher SC, and
MSV Duisburg will do well to avoid an immediate return to the second tier. A good start is essential for all three. Duisburg have taken a gamble in bringing in former Bundesliga top-scorer Ailton. Karlsruhe have done well to secure the talents of Andreas Görlitz from Bayern Munich. Each of the newcomers will want to emulate the achievements of Cottbus last season.
All in all we are set for another exciting season in the German Bundesliga. Record crowds will be flocking to matches to see for themselves whether the title is a foregone conclusion for Bayern, or whether one of the other challengers can push them all the way.
Let the games begin!
Goal.com - Germany - German Bundesliga Taster: Can Anyone Stop Bayern?
Bundesliga 2007/08 ~ Champions: FC Bayern München
