Can Leverkusen repeat their masterstroke? How strong are the new Bayern? And who will be relegated? The big interview with blue Sport expert Marcel Reif ahead of the Bundesliga season opener.
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- The new Bundesliga season kicks off on Friday with Borussia Mönchengladbach against Bayer Leverkusen.
- Can Gerardo Seoane get Gladbach back on track after a difficult first season? Will Granit Xhaka's Leverkusen become champions again? Or will Bayern Munich strike back with new stars and a new coach?
- blue Sport expert Marcel Reif gives his assessment of the new Bundesliga season in an interview.
Marcel Reif, the Bundesliga is starting again. Last season, Bayer Leverkusen finished unbeaten as champions. Leverkusen were able to keep all their key players and coach Xabi Alonso is still there. Are the defending champions the big favorites?
Marcel Reif: If they can get what they showed last season back on the pitch, then they are definitely the top favorites. But it's always one thing to be successful. And it's another to deal with it next season and maintain that success. This is completely new for Leverkusen. When Bayern become champions five times in a row, it's nothing new to aim for the title again in the new season. But these are completely new times for Leverkusen.
The expectations are suddenly different.
And then there's the Champions League. How are individual players dealing with their new fame? They've had the whole summer to think: "Man, we've only lost one bloody competitive game. Nothing else. Man, we're already really great stags!" The big task will be to handle the success sensibly, but I have faith in Xabi Alonso.
In contrast to Leverkusen, Bayern have had a shake-up. Several players have left, new stars have arrived and the coach has changed. Is that exactly what Bayern needed to regain its former strength?
The squad hasn't become much weaker, Bayern have already made targeted purchases. They haven't quite made the transition yet, but they've taken a big step and they needed it. The team, the squad was full, even oversaturated. Some players were also getting on in years, and others showed that they lacked the quality to be Bayern players.
Can Vincent Kompany be trusted to lead the star ensemble to titles again?
He is a new young coach who has not yet worked at this level, but has a lot of praise ahead of him. He was a great player and people have a lot of faith in him as a coach, otherwise Bayern wouldn't have brought him in. Even if he was the fifth choice, you have to be honest. Many others have turned him down. And the Bayern dressing room is also a dangerous place.
Specify.
The players have to want to work with this new coach and not say at the first slightly weaker event: "Well, we're also a training club for coaches here." That's what happens in the Bayern dressing room. They've done it many times in the past and recently Bayern had a turnover of coaches that was grotesque and not worthy of a club like Bayern at this level.
Nevertheless, Bayern Munich should once again be the team to beat if they want to become champions.
If they can get to grips with all that, if they let Kompany do his thing, if Uli Hoenes and others on the outside work less with their mouths and more in the background, then the squad is good enough to stand up to Leverkusen and keep up. I expect a duel for the championship title.
And who will come out on top in the end?
I fear that Bayern will exploit some of Leverkusen's weaknesses and problems. They are hungry - and they are on a mission. The Champions League final is in Munich next year. Bayern teams can go on a mission like that and get a flow. There are enough people who say a bus driver can coach a team like that. It was the same when they won six titles in 2020. I don't think Leverkusen can match their consistency from last season, which is why I think Bayern are ahead.
Dortmund, Leipzig and Stuttgart are also interesting teams. Don't they have a chance of winning the title?
Stuttgart had some difficult departures, which they were obviously able to compensate for quite well. They do a lot of things wisely, have a great coach and the team pulls together. I saw that in the Supercup, they were really good again. So Stuttgart won't go down, but I think Dortmund are even stronger.
Why is that?
Dortmund now have a coach who I have much more confidence in than Edin Terzic before. And they've finally put together a squad that makes sense. You get the feeling that they've really worked on their weak areas, which is why I see BVB only just behind Bayern and Leverkusen. If those two weaken, Dortmund could be the dark horse this year.
And RB Leipzig?
Leipzig have lost Dani Olmo, which is a big departure. We'll see how they cope with that, but they'll certainly be playing for fourth place.
Do you have any other surprise teams on your list that could be among the front runners?
No, the top five are too strong. Anyone can beat anyone in a game, but over 34 games I don't see any other team that could do what Stuttgart did last season again. That was really sensational, but I don't see any potential in other teams at the moment.
There are 14 Swiss players in the Bundesliga. One or two of them will have to fight for their place. Leonidas Stergiou and Fabian Rieder at Stuttgart or Aurèle Amenda in Frankfurt. Will they be able to assert themselves?
In terms of their potential, their talent, their ability, yes. But they just have to accept that it's a different world. And that the Bundesliga is a different challenge. They have to show that they have the level. Not because they're Swiss, everyone is. But you trust them to do it, otherwise you wouldn't have brought them in.
The season could also be special for Gregor Kobel. He has now replaced Yann Sommer as the national team's number 1. Does that give him extra pressure in Dortmund?
Gregor Kobel and pressure - I've never seen that before. At most, he sometimes puts himself under pressure when he wants to play balls out from the back that are perhaps better not to be played out. Otherwise, he's such a seasoned goalie who has now been voted the best goalkeeper in the league once again. The fact that he's now the number 1 in the national team will give him a boost. That was his goal, that was his dream. Now he just has to make sure he doesn't get fed up, but I'm not worried about that with him.
Gerardo Seoane is another Swiss coach continuing to work in the Bundesliga. Last season with Borussia Mönchengladbach was difficult. Will it be better now?
The credit has been used up, now he has to deliver. Gladbach is in a state of total upheaval. Many players want to leave, how and with whom do you want to build something? I'll be cautious and say it will be exciting. It's a huge task for Seoane. If things don't go smoothly very quickly, I think we'll soon be talking again.
Kiel and St. Pauli are two new teams in the league. Are they also the biggest relegation candidates?
Kiel and St. Pauli are two genuine newcomers. They are not returnees who have just taken a break in the second division but actually belong in the Bundesliga. These are two genuine second division clubs that have been promoted. The gap between the first and second divisions is widening every year. If Kiel or St. Pauli stay in, it would be like winning the league title for them. But I think the chances are very, very slim.
Who else could slip in at the bottom?
For Heidenheim, another small club, it's their second season after promotion. They've been poached, they've had to give up good players because the other teams simply have better financial opportunities. That's dangerous. Bochum will also be at the back. But now let's do it the other way around.
Please.
The script looks like this: Kiel and St. Pauli are relegated. But if they don't stick to the script, it will be dangerous for the clubs who now believe that Kiel and St. Pauli will be relegated anyway. It's happened many times before, then they wake up on matchday 20 and say: "Tell me, things are going really badly here." Gladbach, Union Berlin and other clubs will have to make sure that they do their job and that the others down there stick to the script.
