Club-by-club guide to the 2019/20 Bundesliga
Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig are all tussling for the title
The Bundesliga returns to action on May 16. Here Liam Flin takes a look at how the 18 clubs in Germany's top-flight have performed...
Augsburg
League position: 14th
Manager: Heiko Herrlich
Star player: Florian Niederlechner
Season so far
The Bavarian outfit, who are 10-1 for the drop, invested well last summer, signing this term’s top scorer Florian Niederlechner for only €2.5 million and adding the likes of Carlos Gruezo, Iago and Tomas Koubek to improve the defensive side of their game.
But, although they enjoyed wins over Hertha, Hoffenheim and Dusseldorf among others in a great run before the winter break, seven defeats in their last nine brought an end to Martin Schmidt’s tenure and they are now in a battle to stay up.
Bayern Munich
League position: 1st
Manager: Hansi Flick
Star player: Robert Lewandowski
Season so far
Despite prolific marksman Robert Lewandowski becoming the first Bundesliga player to score in each of the opening 11 games of a season, Bayern Munich were slow starters this campaign and dropped as low as seventh in December.
But, after replacing Niko Kovac with new manager Hansi Flick, who has since signed a deal to stay at the club until 2023, they have been irrepressible, winning 11 of their last 12 matches and they are 2-9 to win an eighth successive top-flight title.
Bayer Leverkusen
League position: 5th
Manager: Peter Bosz
Star player: Kai Havertz
Season so far
While progressing to the semi-finals of the DFB Pokal and the last 16 of the Europa League, Bayer Leverkusen have also kept in the running for a Champions League spot and are only two points adrift of fourth-placed Borussia Monchengladbach.
They have proven themselves in big contests, enjoying a 4-3 win over Borussia Dortmund at home and edging Bayern Munich 2-1 away, and goals have been shared across a dynamic front line comprising the likes of Kevin Volland, Kai Havertz, Lucas Alario and Leon Bailey.
Borussia Dortmund
League position: 2nd
Manager: Lucien Favre
Star player: Jadon Sancho
Season so far
Borussia Dortmund failed to capitalise on Bayern Munich’s initial slow start to the season but since snapping up wonderkid Erling Haaland from Salzburg, they have gone from strength to strength and could offer value at 11-2 to win the title given they are only four points off top spot.
Having started his Dortmund tenure with a 20-minute hat-trick against Augsburg on his league debut, Haaland has become the focal point of arguably the division’s most exciting attack which also features highly sought after Jadon Sancho, who has netted 17 goals and laid on 15 assists in the Bundesliga this campaign.
Borussia Monchengladbach
League position: 4th
Manager: Marco Rose
Star player: Yann Sommer
Season so far
Built around a solid defence which has conceded only 30 league goals this term, Borussia Monchengladbach’s season has been a successful one and they are on course for Champions League football next term.
Despite the loss of key playmaker Thorgan Hazard last summer, the likes of Marcus Thuram and Alassane Plea have made them a dangerous attacking unit who beat Bayern Munich 2-1 at home earlier this season and occupied top spot between the start of October and beginning of December.
Cologne
League position: 10th
Manager: Markus Gisdol
Star player: Jhon Cordoba
Season so far
Cologne ranked among the ante-post favourites for relegation after gaining promotion from Bundesliga 2 last term and looked set for a tough season after five defeats in their opening six games, including 4-0 losses to Bayern Munich and Hertha Berlin.
But a remarkable turnaround since mid-December has seen them beat Hertha 5-0, Schalke 3-0 and Freiburg 4-0 with ten-goal Colombian striker Jhon Cordoba coming into his own to propel the club into the mid-table positions, where they look set to stay.
Eintracht Frankfurt
League position: 12th
Manager: Adi Hutter
Star player: Filip Kostic
Season so far
Losing star forwards Luka Jovic, Sebastien Haller and Ante Rebic last summer was always going to make a successful season a tall order for Eintracht Frankfurt, who have been significantly better at home than on the road.
Six of their eight league wins have come at the Commerzbank-Arena but their away performances and lack of firepower in front of goal has left them languishing in mid-table obscurity. The DFB-Pokal is their best hope of securing European football.
Fortuna Dusseldorf
League position: 16th
Manager: Uwe Rosler
Star player: Rouwen Hennings
Season so far
Fortuna Dusseldorf enjoyed a solid first season in the Bundesliga after gaining promotion, finishing tenth in 2018-19, but have endured a turbulent campaign this time around, losing 13 of their 25 assignments.
The losses of Dodi Lukebakio and ten-goal Benito Raman last summer depleted their attacking resources and their return of only 27 league goals this term puts them at significant risk of the drop, even after the managerial switch which saw Uwe Rosler replace Friedhelm Funkel.
Freiburg
League position: 8th
Manager: Christian Streich
Star player: Nils Petersen
Season so far
For a side whose primary focus was avoiding the drop this season, Freiburg have gone above and beyond expectations and are nestled in the mid-table positions.
They took 13 points from a possible 18 at the start of the season and, holding Borussia Dortmund to a 2-2 draw along the way, they were in the mix for the top four as recently as late November.
A three-man defence comprising Nico Schlotterbeck, Philip Lienhart and Robin Koch has made them tough to break down while the combination of eight-goal Nils Petersen and youngster Luca Waldschmidt in the final third has made for a winning combination.
Hertha Berlin
League position: 13th
Manager: Bruno Labbadia
Star player: Krzysztof Piatek
Season so far
So heavy was the attacking burden on youngster Dodi Lukebakio at Hertha Berlin this season, the capital club responded by snapping up highly rated forwards Krzysztof Piatek and Matheus Cunha in January to arrest their slide.
They seemed to have a bit more about them in attack before the break, scoring three against Dusseldorf and twice against Werder Bremen, but even two managerial changes - Ante Covic and Jurgen Klinsmann were both dismissed this term - has done little to help them climb the table. They should have enough to stave off the drop but this will go down as a disappointing season.
Hoffenheim
League position: 9th
Manager: Alfred Schreuder
Star player: Andrej Kramaric
Season so far
Few anticipated Hoffenheim could emulate last term’s top-seven finish this season after the losses of manager Julian Nagelsmann and key players Kerem Demirbay, Nico Schulz, Nadiem Amiri and Joelintion.
But under former assistant Alfred Schreuder they followed a rocky start in which they won one of their first six games with a decent run which has seen them beat Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen. As long as Kramaric, who finished third in the league goal charts last season, is scoring, they have an outside shot of making Europe.
Leipzig
League position: 3rd
Manager: Julian Nagelsmann
Star player: Timo Werner
Season so far
Leipzig were a significant distance behind leading pair Bayern and Dortmund last season but are well in the mix for the title this term, having lost only one of their last 16 contests as part of a run which started with an 8-0 demolition of Mainz.
They have one of Europe’s most highly rated forwards in Timo Werner, who has bagged 21 goals in 25 league fixtures, and added exciting young midfielder Dani Olmo to their ranks in January. Their 4-0 dismantling of Tottenham in the Champions League demonstrated they can beat anyone on their day.
Mainz
League position: 15th
Manager: Achim Beierlorzer
Star player: Robin Quaison
Season so far
Beyond the goal-scoring exploits of Robin Quaison, who is the division’s top scorer outside of the league’s big three sides with 12 strikes, it has been a season of mediocrity for porous Mainz.
Sandro Schwarz was dismissed as manager after they followed the biggest defeat in their history - an 8-0 thrashing by Leipzig - with a 3-2 loss at home to Union Berlin.
There have been enough positives under new manager Achim Beierlorzer, who masterminded a 5-1 win in his first game before recording the club’s biggest Bundesliga success with a 5-0 hammering of Werder Bremen, to suggest they can stay afloat.
Paderborn
League position: 18th
Manager: Steffen Baumgart
Star player: Streli Mamba
Season so far
After back-to-back promotions, little was expected of Paderborn going into this Bundesliga campaign and their open style of play has seen them register only four wins in 25 league assignments.
They have been rooted to the foot of the table since December 14 and the writing was on the wall after they took only one point from their first eight matches. They are 1-16 for the drop but the likes of Streli Mamba, Abdelhamid Sabiri and Kai Proger have provided plenty of entertainment, not least when they went 3-0 up against Borussia Dortmund only to draw 3-3.
Schalke
League position: 6th
Manager: David Wagner
Star player: Suat Serdar
Season so far
Schalke were one of the biggest disappointments of the 2018-19 campaign, finishing a lowly 14th in the Bundesliga, but David Wagner and a string of loan signings have rejuvenated the Royal Blues this campaign.
The predictable loss to Bayern Munich aside, Schalke started the season strongly with four wins in their opening six matches and they have held their own against some of the division’s elite, holding bitter rivals Dortmund to a 0-0 draw in October and beating Leipzig away the month before.
But wastefulness in the final third saw them fail to win any of their last seven matches before the hiatus and they are by no means assured of a European berth.
Union Berlin
League position: 11th
Manager: Urs Fischer
Star player: Sebastian Andersson
Season so far
Perhaps the biggest overachievers of the season, Union Berlin have defied expectations to occupy a mid-table position after becoming the first club from East Berlin to reach the Bundesliga with promotion last season.
They added the experience of Neven Subotic and Christian Gentner to their ranks and have been reliant on the goals of Sebastian Andersson and their form at their Stadion An der Alten Forsterei home, where six of their nine league wins have come, including the memorable scalp of Borussia Dortmund.
Werder Bremen
League position: 17th
Manager: Florian Kohfeldt
Star player: Milot Rashica
Season so far
With their 39-year stay in the Bundesliga under significant threat, Werder Bremen have been an enigma this season. The club finished a respectable eighth last term, only one point off the Europa League qualification spots, but are in the thick of a relegation battle this season.
They have been particularly poor at their Weserstadion home, where they have won only once all season, and have scored (27) the fewest goals in the division, while conceding the most (55). A young squad with an inexperienced manager at the helm, it is not looking good for Bremen.
Wolfsburg
League position: 7th
Manager: Oliver Glasner
Star player: Wout Weghorst
Season so far
Oliver Glasner has delivered plenty of highlights in his first season at Wolfsburg after arriving from LASK Linz last summer. The club captivated with their swashbuckling 3-4-3 system to rise to second after eight matches but some heavy defeats to the division’s big guns - they lost 3-0 to Dortmund and 6-1 to Leipzig - gave them a healthy dose of reality.
They have a strong squad nonetheless with Dutch powerhouse Wout Weghorst, who has scored 15 goals in all competitions, leading the line and are a decent selection to break into the top six if Schalke falter.
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