Bayer Leverkusen has the talent to defend its Bundesliga title, but they will face another stern test from perennial favorite Bayern Munich.
Last season, Leverkusen, coached by Xabi Alonso, had unprecedented success, snapping Bayern Munich’s streak of 11 consecutive league championships, winning the DFB-Pokal, and becoming the first Bundesliga team to finish a league season unbeaten.
Leverkusen has reloaded and signed midfielder Aleix García from Spanish side Girona, which had their best season in La Liga with a third-place finish. García appeared in 37 La Liga matches, scored three goals, and added six assists while being named to La Liga’s Team of the Season.
García will be a huge boost to a midfield that includes Florian Wirtz, who scored his three goals in Leverkusen’s 5–0 win over Werder Bremen that clinched its first German championship. Swiss national Granit Xhaka is also a key member of the midfield and scored in a 1–0 over Kaiserslautern in the DFB-Pokal final, which gave the club its first domestic double.
Leverkusen’s attack is led by forward Victor Boniface, who scored 14 goals in the Bundesliga last season. Boniface is also a member of the Nigerian National Team. Left-back Álex Grimaldo is also back after scoring 12 goals with 20 assists across all competitions in his debut season with Leverkusen.
Despite falling behind Leverkusen last season, Bayern Munich, the most decorated club in German soccer, is the favorite to recapture the title this season. Bayern hired Belgian Vincent Kompany as the new manager to get the squad back on track. It was a bit of a controversial move because Kompany’s previous stop was the manager at Burnley, which was relegated from the English Premier League.
Nonetheless, Kompany has confidence that Bayern will get back on top.
“When I said that part of me was trying to have a neutral opinion on this, it was definitely about being able to do my work and analyzing what I thought could hopefully go better this season and what maybe went wrong last season,” Kompany told Bundesliga.com on Aug. 9.
“What is exciting is that you do normally get a reaction when you have big players who have been hurt. Everybody else is laughing and having a bit of fun at the expense of those players who were very successful for many years. I would expect a reaction, and that’s an exciting time to be joining the club.”
Bayern had added key players to supplement the current roster. The team reached into the English Premier League to sign Fulham midfielder Joao Palhinha, who is a fierce tackler, and Crystal Palace’s Michael Olise, an attacking midfielder who scored goals with six assists in just 19 appearances last season. Bayner boosted its defense by signing defender Hiroki Ito from Stuttgart, which finished runner-up to Leverkusen last season.
One of the keys for Bayern will be the scoring prowess of English international Harry Kane, who signed with the club in 2023 after a storied career at Tottenham Hotspur, where he scored 213 goals over 317 appearances. Kane’s first season at Bayern was a success, and he earned the European Golden Shoe award after scoring 36 goals in 32 appearances.
Bayern Munich and Leverkusen will have their first meeting on Sept. 28 at the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany.
Borussia Dortmund should battle for third place in the Bundesliga. It’s a transition year for Dortmund, which replaced manager Edin Terzic with Nuri Sahin, a beloved player for the club. In addition, Marco Reus and Mats Hummels left Dortmund. Reus signed with Major League Soccer club the Los Angeles Galaxy, and Hummel is still weighing his options.
Dortmund has reloaded with the addition of Guinea forward Serhou Guirassy from rival Stuttgart. Guirassy scored 28 goals last season, second to Kane in the Bundesliga. Dortmund also signed Maximilian Beier, a prolific 21-year-old who scored 16 goals for Hoffenheim last year. Pascal Gross, who was signed from EPL club Brighton, is a versatile midfielder who should be another solid addition.
The other Bundesliga teams looking to compete for a top-four finish are RB Leipzig, Stuttgart, Eintracht Frankfurt, and Borussia Monchengladbach.
