The Bundesliga is filled with surprises:
Düsseldorf’s unbeaten run came to an end at the hands of Mainz. Mönchengladbach, in horrible form prior to this week, beat the second best side in the league according to the table, Eintracht Frankfurt. Nürnberg rolled over, allowing Freiburg to score two goals in extra time en route to a 3-0 win. Augsburg beat Bremen. Only in the Bundesliga do surprising results occur every week.
Düsseldorf played Schalke last week but wasn’t defeated. Yet Mainz achieved what a superior Schalke couldn’t. Frankfurt was undefeated and had only dropped points against Dortmund. Yet, a side gasping for breath now under the spotlight easily put them away. Bremen was expected to put away an Augsburg side which sits in the relegation zone. Instead, they were beaten 3-1 on Friday.
Fürth is coming off as the worst promoted side:
The manner in which the world works is strange. Fürth came up as champions of the second division with a license to thrill. They were the fun-loving side which vowed to stay true to their attacking play. Instead Fürth has struck just twice and has lost many matches. Their latest loss was 0-1 to HSV.
Olivier Occean seemingly contributed more to the team than just goals. His absence has left the side in a mess. His new team Frankfurt was doing well until this week. Düsseldorf, the third of the promoted sides, sits in the top ten. Their style of play is much more pragmatic than that of Fürth.
In a league filled with attacking sides, Fürth was supposed to fit right in. However, Fürth’s first year in the top flight is turning out to be much more of a nightmare than a dream.
Mainz is perhaps the only side in the league which provides constant entertainment:
Bayern, Dortmund and Schalke all have off-days during which they can’t seem to get flowing. However, Thomas Tuchel’s side is always entertaining, even on their off days. They seem to feed off the energy of their coach. Mainz has made many fans in the league since 2010 when they won the first seven games of the campaign. They along with Dortmund are pioneers of the pressing game in Germany. Even Bayern seems to have adopted that tactic into their play.
Mainz however doesn’t always get the results they deserve. This week, they fully deserved their win against Düsseldorf. Düsseldorf had a man sent off late in the game but perhaps the sending off did little to affect the final result. Mainz’s play is effective against the big boys too. They have been a thorn in Bayern’s side for the past two seasons.
Dortmund just cannot learn to ‘dance at two weddings’:
In general, Bayern fans want Dortmund to do well in Europe. Aside from the fact that all Bayern fans are Bundesliga fans, they also want this because this helps their side’s title challenge. Dortmund’s style is energy sapping. The team cannot keep up the same intensity three days apart. League matches following midweek matches tend to be the ones where Dortmund drops the points.
Hannover is a tough side to play especially in their stadium. Dortmund was leading 1-0 but Hannover earned a deserved equalizer late in the match to pull out a 1-1 draw. The draw saw Dortmund lose further ground on Bayern. It must be said that Hannover was a bit rough on the Dortmund players. Many of them went down injured in the match.
However, a champion would seal the win by scoring a second. Dortmund didn't do so; a combination of wastefulness, unlucky injuries and fatigues saw BVB fail to secure a win following European action.
Last season, when Bayern and Dortmund met for the first time, the difference was eight points. The difference at this stage is already nine points this season. It will perhaps only grow bigger considering the fact that Dortmund is putting their heart and soul into earning a spot in the last 16 of the Champions League.
Leverkusen, with added consistency, can challenge for the title:
Leverkusen does actually have three wins to their name this season. They also have two draws along with those wins. Both those draws should have been wins for Die Werkself. They drew with Mönchengladbach, 2-2. Andre Schürrle missed a vital penalty. They could have beaten Stuttgart too. Stefan Kiessling despite scoring two goals could have scored more. The team can win more games.
Leverkusen has succumbed in their biggest challenge so far- they were beaten 3-0 by Dortmund. However, they have shown that they can defeat everyone except perhaps Bayern, Dortmund and Schalke this season. They did beat Bayern last season by the way. With a bit more consistency, Leverkusen can actually challenge for the title or at-least for a Champions League spot.
After all, you don’t need to beat the best teams to finish in the top four in the league.
