Bundesliga Match Day 1: Preview and Forecast
Well, it's back....the Bundesliga is back!
If you are looking for a preview to tide you over until kickoff, check out the work we did at Bavarian Football Works here. It won't take you all day to read and it will help you kill some time in your "busy" work day.
Last year was our inaugural campaign at The Barrel covering the league and we are back to provide news, commentary, previews, hilariously awful predictions***, and weekly capsule recaps to help with your German football fix.
Last season's (embarrassing) record: 59-67*
*We covered the last 14 weeks of the season. **Note: Predicted ties count as a win if correct and as a loss if there is a winner; conversely if a game is predicted to have a winner but ends in a tie, it will count as a loss.
***Other Note: Many of these picks were made under the influence of beer and a natural inclination to reckless behavior.
There is no better place to start our first preview of the season than with reigning six-time champion Bayern Munich vs. Hoffenheim, which should provide both teams with an idea of where they stand to start the season. Die Roten selected Niko Kovac to take over for Jupp Heynckes and in doing so, passed over one of Heynckes' rumored successors, Julian Nagelsmann - coach of Hoffenheim (who will leave for RB Leipzig in 2019....follow me?).
If the preseason means anything, Kovac appears to have Bayern headed in the right direction and has a boatload of talent at his disposal. Hoffenheim, meanwhile, has tactically given Bayern trouble at times over the past three seasons.
Don't expect any issues this time around for Bayern.
Kovac is free deploy his arsenal at will and this just seems like a game where Bayern will be able to dictate pace and control play; leading to several opportunities for the Polish Hitman, Robert Lewandowski.
Lewandowski could be headed to a tremendous season after mulling a transfer and dealing with feelings of under-appreciation last season. With Thomas Muller playing confidently and James Rodriguez, Kingsley Coman, Thiago Alcantara, Joshua Kimmich, David Alaba, Arjen Robben, and Franck Ribery all proven and capable of setting up Lewandowski, the Polish international is going to get a ton of opportunities and has already shown a deft scoring touch with a combined four goals in the DFL-Supercup and DFB-Pokal so far this season.
Hoffenheim will likely try to ride Andrej Kramaric as its primary offensive weapon this season, but the Croatian may not suit up for this tilt. Either way, it is hard to think that the squad will be able to generate much against the Bayern machine. We do expect, however, that if Florian Grillistch is healthy enough to play he could make an impact, while rumored Bayern-target, Kevin Vogt, will also want to play well in hopes of impressing the Bayern front office.
In the end, Bayern looks ready to start its season off with a bit of a bang.
Prediction: Bayern Munich 4, Hoffenheim 0.
In other matches this weekend:
Schalke 04 3, Wolfsburg 1: Die Königsblauen will be looking to followup on its successful 2017-2018 campaign under Domenico Tedesco and should have the roster to at least put a threat into Bayern. Certainly Schalke should have enough to push past the Wolves on opening weekend. Mark Uth's transfer from Hoffenheim should provide a bit more stability up-top for Tedesco, while USMNT hopeful Weston McKennie will be looking to show his skill in the midfield. The Wolves are wayward side just looking for something (anything?) positive. Unfortunately for Wolfsburg, it probably won't find what it is looking for here.
Hertha Berlin 2, FC Nürnberg 1: Hertha Berlin is in a bit of a no-win situation. Stuck in the realm of mediocrity, Die Alte Dame absolutely needs to get off to a good start this season. The worst thing you can say about Hertha Berlin, however, isn't they aren't good or they aren't bad...they just don't matter unfortunately. They'll do enough to stay out of the RELEGATION DANGER ZONE, but nowhere near enough to be labeled as a serious contender. FC Nürnberg, meanwhile, will be more than eager to compete for a 'W' in its first game after being promoted. Mikael Ishak and Bayern-loanee, Timothy Tillman, should be two of the primary weapons for Der Club and will likely do enough to keep this one close.
Hannover 96 2, Werder Bremen 2: This is a matchup between two of the more intriguing teams in the league. Hannover was a flat-out pest in the league last season and seems fully equipped to build on the success it had behind team spark plug Niclas Fullkrug. Werder Bremen, of course, came on in the second half of the season after a horrid start. One of the players to watch for Bremen is Marco Friedl, who is on loan for Bayern Munich. The Austrian outside back could be poised for a breakthrough season. It would also be tremendous to see USMNT starlet Josh Sargent break into the lineup for Bremen this season and that will be a situation we follow closely here. Currently playing a big role for Werder Bremen II in 5 Regionalliga Nord, Sargent is likely going to have an opportunity to showcase himself for the first-team at some point this season.
FC Augsburg 3, Fortuna Düsseldorf 1: This is going to be one of those years in the Bundesliga where the the promoted teams have a really good shot at staying in the top division. This week, however, we are expecting Augsburg to give Fortuna a bit of a hard time. Philipp Max, Alfred Finnbogason, and Michael Gregoritsch are a lethal offensive trio and should make like awful at times for the newly promoted side. Fortuna is not a pushover by any means, but this week is about Augsburg showing it is no longer one of the league's pushovers.
Eintracht Frankfurt 2, SC Freiburg 1: The season has not started yet and Eintracht Frankfurt is already in a bit of a free-fall. The defending DFB-Pokal champions have already been eliminated from that tourney, which was really just salt in the wounds after the 5-0 drubbing that it took at the hands of Bayern in the DFL-Supercup. Regardless, it is time for Die Adler to wake up. Ante Rebic, Sebastian Haller, Luka Jović, and Mijat Gaćinović should make up a formidable offensive core group for Frankfurt, while Freiburg will counter with Nils Petersen, who had a solid 2017-2018 campaign. Keep an eye on Gian-Luca Waldschmidt for Freiburg as well (if he plays). The 22-year old is considered one the league's top up-and-coming talents.
Bayer Leverkusen 3, Borussia Monchengladbach 1: This matchup represents one of the more fun games of the weekend. Die Werkself has a dynamic core of offensive talent with Julian Brandt, Leon Bailey, Kai Havertz, Lucas Alario, and Kevin Volland, while also possessing good defensive talent with Jonathan Tah, Mitchell Weiser, and Sven Bender among others. The Foals, meanwhile, are powered by Thorgan Hazard, Raffael, and new striker Alassane Plea until captain Lars Stindl can return. If M'Gladbach was at full power, this would likely be a much better match, but Leverkusen has a bit too much offensive power right now. One thing to watch is the situation with Volland. It may be tough for Heiko Herrlich to use all of that offensive talent at the same time, which could cause issues in the locker room.
VfB Stuttgart 3, Mainz 1: Stuttgart must shake off its DFB-Pokal disaster against Hansa (2-0 loss!) and regroup for a Mainz side that it should be able to beat. Stuttgart features some excellent talent (but is admittedly very top heavy) in Benjamin Pavard, Mario Gomez, and Holger Badstuber to name a few, which should be enough to power Die Schwaben to a season opening victory. Mainz will be seeking to stave out relegation again this year and will rely heavily on Jean-Philippe Gbamin to provide leadership and stability in the midfield.
Borussia Dortmund 3, RB Leipzig 2: If you are looking for a game to watch based on potential entertainment value, this one could be it. It will be very interesting to see if either team can mount enough of a defensive stance to offset the opposition's high-powered offense. I'm actually VERY excited to watch this one in hopes of an up-and-down the field, high-paced, and just overall fun game. Dortmund will have new coach Lucien Favre looking to correct last year's debacle and will have a very solid core to work with as Marco Reus, Christian Pulisic (if healthy), Mario Gotze, Thomas Delaney, Axel Witsel,and Marius Wolf. For Die Roten Bullen, Timo Werner, Emil Forsberg, Yussuf Poulsen, and Willi Orban are all back to lead the squad, although Orban could find himself under massive pressure this weekend unless his mates track back enough to provide quality support. Either way, this one should be a blast to watch (if you don't mind a lack of defense).
An interesting side story is with Gotze. The former Bayern player is at the crossroads of his career and if Favre can't find a way to use him consistently, Dortmund should look to let the 2014 World Cup hero leave. He needs field time and as we covered last April,
Random Entertainment Thought
While a different kind of football, this season of HBO's Hard Knocks has been tremendous. Part of the allure is the perennial state of woefulness that encompasses the Cleveland Browns. Another part is the circus act going on within the coaching ranks on that squad, but it's just been pretty damn entertaining overall. I could watch a series JUST on the coaching staff along. Between Hue Jackson's seemingly haphazard management style to the absolute "power keg waiting to explode" combination of offensive coordinator Todd Haley and defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, to hilarious offensive line coach Bob Wylie; this Browns staff just puts out one gem after another on film.
I hope to be digging into the Amazon series on Pep Guardiola's Manchester City "All of Nothing" very soon.
Random Non-Soccer Sports Thought
It is great that the "Aaron Nola is a number 3 at best" crowd has been silenced by the Philadelphia Phillies righthander. The 2014 first round draft pick improved to 15-3 with a 2.13 ERA yesterday as he out-dueled Washington Nationals stalwart Max Scherzer for a 2-0 victory. When Nola was first called up, the chorus of people dismissing the former LSU star was off the charts and it only got worse when the pitcher endured some injury issues. Now, however, Nola is showcasing his ability for all to see and has proven to be a true "Ace."
Not bad for a guy who many thought couldn't achieve top flight status.
