After six consecutive seasons of Bayern Munich domination, it looks as though the Bundesliga has finally produced a new narrative, with the resurgence of Borussia Dortmund.
Last season was a mere procession. Despite parting company with coach Carlo Ancelotti in September, Bayern strolled to the Bundesliga title, losing just four times along the way, finishing with a 21 points lead over second-placed Schalke, while Dortmund trailed in fourth, eight points back from Schalke and behind Hoffenheim on goal difference.
But eight months on and the Bundesliga table tells a very different story. Under new manager Lucien Favre, Dortmund have set the early pace, leaving Bayern six points behind, with their new boss Niko Kovac under immense pressure to close the gap.
Dortmund topped the table at the end of September, with a 4-2 win at Bayer Leverkeusen and have remained there ever since. A run of six consecutive victories came to an end with a surprise defeat at Dusseldorf, but they won their final game before the winter break against third-placed Borussia Monchengladbach to maintain their lead. Marco Reus has scored eleven times for Dortmund, while Spanish forward Paco Alcacer shares the top goal-scorer podium with twelve and they’ve helped Favre’s team to record an impressive 44 goals at the half-way stage.
For Bayern, this has been a chastening season so far. Going into the winter break, they had already lost three games and were only three points clear of Borussia Monchengladbach. They started the season brightly, winning their first four games, and even after drawing with FC Augsberg on September 25, they were still top of the table. But three defeats in six games, including a crucial 3-2 loss in Dortmund saw them toppled from their perch and blew the Bundesliga wide open.
Bayern are not to be underestimated. They were overwhelming favourites to win the title at the start of the season, based on the implied probabilities displayed at the bigbetbookmakers.com site, and they have improved following that Dortmund defeat, embarking on a six game winning streak, during which they’ve only conceded once. Still, they have plenty of work to do if they are to catch the league leaders and their home tie against Dortmund on April 6 could be crucial.
The champions’ slump has given encouragement to some of the other Bundesliga contenders who are usually resigned to battling for European qualification places. Borussia Monchengladbach have been in contention throughout, although they need to improve their away performances if they are to put Bayern and Dortmund under pressure. Red Bull Leipzig have also struggled on the road, but they have recovered from a slow start to the campaign and their league-leading defence, which has only conceded 17 goals so far, will keep them in contention.
At the other end of the table, Hannover have struggled, winning just two games so far, along with newly-promoted Nurnberg, who are without a win since September and have conceded 38 goals. Stuttgart are also in the relegation zone, but three wins in seven games going into the winter break have given Stuttgart fans hope that their team will be able to save themselves in 2019.
