Dortmund turn up the heat
Are the stars aligned for a Bundesliga power shift? Could Bayern Munich be in for a rude awakening after their run of seven straight league crowns? Such questions used to invariably spark snorts of derision. Yet not so much now, with almost 66 per cent of respondents to a poll in Kicker magazine expecting last term’s runners-up Borussia Dortmund to be on top of the pile come May.
By way of contrast, only a fifth of those surveyed were confident of Bayern making it eight in a row; a remarkably low number for a team which for the best part of a decade has crushed the life out of all domestic opponents and a squad renowned for its big-game mentality, voracious hunger and ability to roll with the punches.
The Bayern faithful will be exercise as wishful thinking on the part of their domestic foes, that once the new season begins normal, omnipotent Bavarian service will automatically be resumed. But there can be no room for any complacency at the Allianz Arena: the warning signs are out there and flashing.
