Championship races in most of Europe’s top leagues have failed to capture the imagination in this 2007/08 season. Remarkably enough, only the English Premier League has sparked into life this season as the status quo has maintained itself on the continent.
In Germany, FC Bayern are once again out ahead of the field – and look like staying there. Having spent €70 million on new players in the summer, the Bavarians have effectively bought the title. Franck Ribery, Miroslav Klose, and Luca Toni have buttressed an already strong squad and helped ensure the return of the Bundesliga crown barring catastrophies.
With no Champions League distractions to worry about, Bayern can simply get on with the inevitable – winning the domestic championship while keeping afloat in the UEFA Cup, a trophy they really ought to claim.
Ottmar Hitzfeld departs rather shabbily in the summer, and then the fun really starts. Juergen Klinsmann, that master of cant, returns to his native land to regale us all with American psychobabble and a surfeit of self-confidence. Until then, we’ve got to sit back and watch as they clamber ungainly over the finishing line.
Today, they meet one of their more difficult opponents, Bayer Leverkusen. Michael Skibbe’s team stand poised for Champions League qualification, but must battle Hamburger SV and Werder Bremen to claim that prize. Hamburg visit Wolfsburg while Bremen go to Bielefeld tomorrow. In reality, the Champions League qualification race will provide the greater interest between now and May. Bayern’s financial muscle means that they’ll have the title wrapped up in a month – all that awaits now are the formalities.
