As the start of a new German Bundesliga season looms upon us, TSZ assesses the contenders in terms of the battle for both the title and European football, highlighting those clubs expected to be challenging and ultimately who we think will finish in the top six.
*Note that these are solely our predictions.
GERMAN BUNDESLIGA TOP SIX
1. FC Bayern Munich
2. RB Leipzig
3. Borussia Dortmund
4. Bayer Leverkusen
5. Eintracht Frankfurt
6. Wolfsburg
You'd think that the departure of second-highest all-time Bundesliga top-scorer Robert Lewandowski would lead us to seriously question whether Bayern Munich warrant the tag of title favourites. However, the signing of Liverpool star and serial trophy winner Sadio Mane is more than enough for us not to worry about Julian Nagelsmann's side. The Bavarians maintain a stacked squad and have already done some excellent business this summer with the additions of Mane, Ryan Gravenberch, Noussair Mazraoui and Matthijs de Ligt, with potentially more to come. Any outcome other than them lifting a 11th consecutive 'Meisterschale' would be considered a huge shock.
RB Leipzig began last season terribly, but their fortunes turned around dramatically following the appointment of Domenico Tedesco as head coach, leading to them finishing inside the top four. A full pre-season under Tedesco and this exciting squad have all the ingredients to finish runners-up. Borussia Dortmund will also be right up there, but one can't help but wonder what affect how much the absence of Sebastien Haller will effect them following his testicular tumour diagnosis. All of us at TSZ send our very best thoughts and wishes to Sebastien and his family. When taking in account the quality of Bayer Leverkusen, they look well-placed to reach the Champions League for a second consecutive season. Although Europa League winners Eintracht Frankfurt also boast an excellent team further strengthened by the addition of players such as Mario Gotze, their Champions League commitments could have an adverse effect on their Bundesliga form. As for Wolfsburg, the appointment of Niko Kovac as head coach back in May was a shrewd one and there is no reason why under the former Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal winner that they can't bounce back from 2021-22 with a significantly stronger campaign this time round.