6 favourites for the Champions League: Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and the chances of an English success
Bayern Munich
Bayern have started the domestic season with a 3-1 win over Bayer Leverkusen, but they look weaker than usual based on how they ended last season and their poor pre-season. Even the win against Leverkusen was slightly worrying because of the amount of chances that the opposition were able to create. Compared to Pep Guardiola’s Bayern, they don’t seem as threatening in Europe or as dominant domestically.
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They have recruited smartly by bringing in talented midfielder Corentin Tolisso as well as James Rodríguez who gives them a different kind of attacking threat. Niklas Süle and Sebastian Rudy were also brought in to boost their defensive solidity. However, they have lost the experienced duo of Xabi Alonso and Philipp Lahm due to retirement.
There are areas of concern in this squad, though. They rely on the aged injury-prone duo of Franck Ribéry and Arjen Robben as their threat from the wings. This is a big risk especially seen as they sold Douglas Costa to Juventus, and Kingsley Coman is the only natural backup for that role. Although, Thomas Muller has been used as a ‘raumdeuter’ on the wing in previous seasons. This is a squad that isn’t currently at its peak as some key players need to develop or be replaced.