In some way, Bayern Munich lost three major battles with Borussia Dortmund last season. The League title and German cup were captured by Jurgen Klopp’s side, with the Bavarians their closet challengers. But Bayern Munich’s loss in the Champions League final would have been another immeasurable victory for the current German champions.
The heavy spending in German football is undoubtedly centralised to Munich, with very few clubs willing to go well above a fee around 15 million euros. Yet the undisputed heavyweights of the Bundesliga are struggling to knock a new and interesting champion off it’s perch.
There was another small victory for Jurgen Klopp’s side last season, as they managed to land former player Marco Reus ahead of Bayern—furthering the notion that Dortmund are not going to move aside quietly. Naturally, Bayern needed to save face, as they quickly went ahead with the signing of Xherdan Shaqiri. The Swiss international was a highly-coveted talent, but losing out on Reus would have hurt Bayern much more than any gain from their back-up plan.
Their prestige was enough to lure the biggest goalkeeping talent in Germany when they picked up Manuel Neuer from Schalke, yet the often eccentric goalkeeper was at fault for both of his new team’s league losses to the eventual champions. Not even the outstanding scoring record of Mario Gomez was enough to lead Bayern back to the title and past Borussia Dortmund for good.
But with Dortmund, they’re operating in a very meticulous and admirable way. Their two league title victories almost allow you forget that they’ve had to sell two of their best players over the last 12-months, yet no one seems to be convinced that the team are hugely weakened.
The real success for this Dortmund team is their manager Jurgen Klopp. Should he decide to depart in the future—and there is certainly a fear that he may—the team will start to struggle. His attacking philosophy and need for incredible industry from his side is what has landed them an envious league record of only three losses and a goals for of 80.
The club have seen their captain and prime source of creativity leave for Real Madrid last summer, however, the club hardly felt Nuri Sahin’s departure during the following season. The club, through very little resources, replaced the Turkish international and found other means of inspiration on the pitch.
This time, Shinji Kagawa has left for Manchester United, making the club an enormous profit on their summer 2010 investment. All it means is that Mario Gotze can take up a more central role and flourish as the team’s talisman for the foreseeable future. Luckily, the best young talent in German football is buying into Klopp’s sales pitch.
Yet, so are the other high-profile stars in this Dortmund team: Mats Hummels and Neven Subotic know they can walk into any major club in European football, but they’re keen to continue their career in an exciting and growing team. Kevin Grosskreutz adds the unmistakable industry on one flank, while Jakub Blaszczykowski can provide a cutting edge on the other. Again, both would be welcomed at any other big side in Europe.
Unfortunately for Bayern Munich, their recent Super Cup win will account for very little going into the new season. It appears they’ve landed Javi Martinez from Athletic Bilbao, but at what cost? What does this big signing suggest of the fitness of Bastian Schweinsteiger? And even if all is well with the driving force of Bayern’s midfield, can the team really count on their own talents as Dortmund can?
Arjen Robben is an egotistical mess at times, while Franck Ribery is facing problems away from the pitch tracing back to the 2010 World Cup. Uli Hoeness is not entirely convinced of Mario Gomez because, admittedly, he does squander a lot of chances. The team are also without a confident and reliable centre-back to partner Holgar Badstuber, however that may be solved with the introduction of Martinez.
Bayern Munich’s position in German and world football is unlikely to be shaken any time soon. But their latest challenge is to overcome a seemingly more dynamic and exciting product in the west of the country.
I would back Dortmund for another league title this season primarily due to the influence of Jurgen Klopp and the confidence he gives his players. The team’s summer losses will hurt, but those wounds will heal very quickly. A new frontier for Dortmund will now be to expand their domestic success into Europe.