Looking Around the League: The Bundesliga Returns!

Bayern Munich thumping teams on their way to their 10th consecutive Bundesliga title barely feels like a distant memory, and yet here we are, with Bayern Munich thumping teams on their way to their 11th consecutive Bundesliga title. The Bundesliga is back baby, and we’ve got yet another season of convincing ourselves that this isn’t a fundamentally broken system. I can hardly contain my excitement.

Bayern Munich kicked things off for us by kicking Eintracht Frankfurt to a pulp, beating Die Adler 6-1 in a season opener that addressed the burning question since Lewandowski’s departure, “Where will the goals come from?”, with the answer “Everywhere, the goals will come from everywhere”.

Elsewhere, we saw the return to the top flight of German football heavyweights, Schalke and Werder Bremen. While Werder Bremen got off to a positive start for the season, Schalke appear to have picked up where they left off at the end of the 2020/21 season.

But above all else, it’s good to get back to some Bundesliga football, to punctuate our silly little lives. Here’s how things look after the the opening games of the season.

Results

Eintracht Frankfurt 1-6 Bayern Munich

Augsburg 0-4 Freiburg

VfL Bochum 1-2 Mainz

Borussia Monchengladbach 3-1 Hoffenheim

Union Berlin 3-1 Hertha Berlin

Wolfsburg 2-2 Werder Bremen

Borussia Dortmund 1-0 Bayer Leverkusen

VfB Stuttgart 1-1 RB Leipzig

FC Köln 3-1 Schalke

Standings

It’s a New Season, and Berlin Still Belongs to Union

Despite having significantly fewer resources and being the smaller of Berlin’s two Bundesliga teams, Union Berlin established themselves as the best team in Germany’s capital last season. Union finished fifth in the league and qualified for the Europa League, while Hertha Berlin held on to their top flight status by the skin of their teeth, beating Hamburg in the promotion-relegation playoff.

If there was any question that this would remain the case going into this season, Union gave an answer right away, winning the Berliner Derby in a convincing fashion.

I don’t think there was any doubt that Hertha Berlin would continue to languish around the relegation zone this season, but it’s good to see Die Eisernen looking just as solid as ever. I had wondered whether we’d see Union struggle this season, having lost Taiwo Awoniyi (to Nottingham Forest) and Grischa Prömel (to Hoffenheim), but a goal and an assist from Sheraldo Becker and a goal from new arrival Jordan Pefok offers some promise.

As to The Old Lady, things are looking pretty grim. I know we shouldn’t draw conclusions one game into a new season, but after a season where they barely managed to stay in the top flight, this 3-1 loss to Union does not bode well. This may be the year we see Hertha Berlin drop down to the 2. Bundesliga.

Your Thoughts

Let’s get your predictions for the Bundesliga season:

• Who will win the league?
• Who will finish in the top six?
• Who will be relegated?
• Who will be the season’s surprise package?