As reigning champions Bayern Munich hope to bounce back after losing the DFL Super Cup to Wolfsburg, die Roten will certainly have plenty on their minds. Whilst many have already figured out that Pep Guardiola's men should have no trouble strolling to yet another league crown, the Bavarian powerhouse have not been able to match that success in Europe for the past two seasons. Following their impressive Treble-winning campaign in the 2012/2013 term under Jupp Heynckes, Bayern have failed to grace the Champions League final, being undone by the La Liga dominant duo of Real Madrid and Barcelona in successive seasons.
Well, with the Champions League not yet upon them, Guardiola's squad can focus on steadily establishing their foothold at the top of the Bundesliga table. Nothing less will be tolerated by the team's massive fan base nor the perpetually-vocal ex-players that week in, week out, are more than happy to share their opinions on the happenings at their former club. This summer has been one of some major changes for the 25-time Bundesliga winners.
Supporters were dismayed by the departure of star midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger, who had been with the club for over half of his entire lifetime - 17 years to be exact - to Manchester United. Other players to say Auf Wiedersehen to the Allianz Arena were veteran attacker Claudio Pizarro and relief goalkeeper Pepe Reina. Still, there have been some notable additions, with the club splashing €37 million on Juventus midfielder Arturo Vidal and another €30 million to acquire Brazilian midfielder Douglas Costa from Ukrainian outfit Shakhtar Donetsk. Both new signings made their official Bayern debuts during the Super Cup loss to Wolfsburg and put in some impressive performances during the team's pre-season preparations.
Ahead of their season opener against familiar opponents Hamburg, Guardiola will have to contend with some absences, with Javi Martinez and Franck Ribery still continuing their recoveries from injury. Still, both Sebastian Rode and Thiago should be back in the fold after missing out on recent matches due to a foot problem and a stomach flu respectively.
Meanwhile, at the opposite end of the spectrum is Hamburg. Despite being the only team to have played in every season of the Bundesliga since its creation in 1963, die Rothosen nearly saw that impressive record go up in smoke after their horrible performance during the 2014/2015 campaign. However, German football followers are well aware of the relegation play-offs, which can offer a team either salvation or relegation. Fortunately for Bruno Labbadia's men and their battle-weary fans, Hamburg managed to squeak past Karlsruher to win 2-1 in extra time after a tense 1-1 draw in the first leg.
The last time Bayern welcomed Hamburg to their home ground was a day to celebrate for the hosts, but one to quickly forget for their opponents. On February 14th, Guardiola's troops showed them no mercy as they thrashed them 8-0, which was the highest scoring home victory of the 2014/2015 Bundesliga season. And after winning three straight league titles, they are by far the favorites to make history by making it four on the trot this upcoming May.
Yet, despite this, World-Cup winning defender Jerome Boateng, who spent three seasons with Hamburg, has warned his team that they may not enjoy an "easy stroll" this time around, whether it's against their upcoming opponents or throughout the course of this season.
"[Given that Hamburg] have nothing to lose, it is dangerous to underestimate them," he noted prior to tomorrow's clash at the Allianz Arena.
"The most important thing is to get a good start to the season and that is a win, no matter how it is achieved. Nevertheless, people must not expect us to destroy every opponent. We have lots of competitors [for the league title including] Wolfsburg, [Borussia] Dortmund, [Borussia] Monchengladbach and [Bayer] Leverkusen."
Bayern fans will surely not want to miss out on their team's first game of the season at the Allianz Arena. And we've got you covered here at LiveSoccerTV, so make sure to check out our Bayern vs. Hamburg page for all viewing and streaming information for your specific location.
Team sheets for Bayern vs Hamburger SV
Bayern's Starting XI: Neuer, Benatia, Lewandowski, Robben, Costa, Alonso, Boateng, Lahm, Vidal, Müller, Alaba.
Hamburger SV's Starting XI: Adler, Diekmeier, Djorou, Spahic, Ostrzolek, Ekdal, Jung, Holtby, Gregoritsch, Schipplock, Ilicevic.
Bayern's subs: to follow.
Hamburger SV's subs: Hirzel, Diaz, Kacar, Müller, Lassoga, Olic.
Match details, result and original broadcast info
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