Well folks, the new Bundesliga season is getting ever nearer, and there is less than a month to wait now. August the 16th is the date…put it in your diary!
The pre-season Bundesliga 2019 betting odds are sure to place FC Bayern as heavy odds-on favourites to win the title again with Borussia Dortmund pushing the hardest for a change in rule at the top.
RB Leipzig and Bayer Leverkusen are also expected to have strong seasons, having qualified for Champions League football, and there will be a challenge from Borussia Monchengladbach and Eintracht Frankfurt for a top-four place, while both take part in the Europa League this term.
Every coach knows that no matter where they sit in the pecking order, they must strengthen, or risk sliding down the league. Meanwhile, the smaller clubs fight desperately to hold on to — or get value for — their own prized assets.
But who’s been making the best moves in the transfer market so far?
All change at Bayern
Two attacking stalwarts of FC Bayern’s successful team are saying goodbye to the champions. Franck Ribery is heading for pastures new after 12 fantastic seasons with the Bavarian giants, while Arjen Robben is hanging up his boots.
The club is on the lookout for replacements, and Manchester City’s Leroy Sane is top of the shopping list. Although, Bayern would have to shell out around £90 million to seal the deal.
City boss Pep Guardiola wants to keep the 23-year-old winger at the Etihad. And while Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and head coach Niko Kovac are both big admirers of the wide man, Pep insists they haven’t yet made an offer, saying: “For a long time they talk about their interest, but Leroy is our player and hopefully he can stay next season and next season and next season.”
Watch this space.
Bayern have already dipped into the market, long before the window opened, signing two of France’s World Cup defenders in Benjamin Pavard and Lucas Hernandez.
Both will feature heavily this season, but it is upfront where some new recruits are needed. Robert Lewandowski will bang the goals in if he gets the supply.
New Hero for the Yellow Wall
BVB ran FC Bayern very close for the 2019 Bundesliga title, but couldn’t stop the Bavarians marching on to a seventh successive league title. Lucien Favre’s team was only two points behind the champions and he has made some early moves to strengthen his side in preparation for another assault on the title.
While Eden Hazard’s switch from Chelsea to Real Madrid hogged the early window headlines, there has been a big move too for his brother Thorgan, who’s gone from Borussia Monchengladbach to Borussia Dortmund in a deal worth around £40m.
It’s a decent coup for BVB after fighting off attention from European champions Liverpool for the Belgian’s signature.
Meanwhile, Die Fohlen have signed Schalke’s front man Breel Embolo as part of their own rebuild.
In his five seasons with Gladbach, Hazard made 182 appearances, scoring 46 goals and making 45 assists. The 2018/19 season was his most productive as he scored 10 with 10 assists.
He could be the new hero in Dortmund and is likely to line up alongside Julian Brandt after his move from Bayer Leverkusen. The attacking midfielder has made 25 appearances for Germany and has a one goal in five games ratio at club level. He’s sure to be a big hit in Dortmund.
Leverkusen need to strengthen for the demanding season ahead. They have already signed PSG winger Moussa Diaby as a replacement for Brandt and have completed the capture of Kerem Demirbay from Hoffenheim.
RB Leipzig will be joining Leverkusen in the 2019/20 Champions League and they have already bolstered their midfield, signing Hannes Wolf in a 12 million Euros deal from sister club Salzburg.
Eintracht Frankfurt will hope to push for a top-four place this season. They have yet to replace Luka Jovic after the striker’s transfer to Real Madrid, but they have spent some of the proceeds of his sale on Swiss midfield man Djibril Sow. But surely there will be more to come in Frankfurt.
There are still four weeks to wheel and deal, but then FC Bayern open up the new season with a home fixture against Hertha Berlin. Meanwhile, Borussia Dortmund takes on Augsburg at the Signal Iduna Park a day later.
You can keep up with all the latest Bundesliga 2019 news and updates right here at SBOBET. We’re watching some of the big guns in the pre-season; Bayern are playing Real Madrid in the International Champions Cup.
That will keep us going!
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