Bundesliga 2015/16

They've already started the Pokal but the season proper kicks off tonight with Bayern (I boldly predict that they won't have the title sewn up by Xmas) at home to Hamburg (please either get halfway decent or get relegated).

Some key comings and goings of the summer :-

Bayern: IN-Vidal, Douglas Costa. OUT-Schweini, Pizarro (pour one out for r/t/c)

Wolfsburg: IN-Max Kruse (p big loss for Gladbach this I think)

Gladbach: IN-Drmic, Stindl (canny signing) OUT-Max Kruse

Leverkusen : IN-Kramer(loan return) OUT-Castro

Schalke : IN-Franco Di Santo (was surprisingly good for Bremen last season but can't see it happening again)

Dortmund : IN - Castro

Of the rest Koln looked to have signed quite well with the trio of Bittencourt, Jojic, and Modeste.

The season will no doubt end with Bayern crowned champions in Pep's last year, but if one was clutching at straws you could point to the 2nd half of last season when Bayern were far from an unstoppable force domestically. Of course they were so far ahead by that stage that they didn't need to be. Quite like to see what Pep comes up with if he has a full squad to choose from. Will Robben replicate his outstanding first half to last season, will Lahm be in midfield again, will Götze finally show his worth at Bayern?

Wolfsburg and Leverkusen were both p great to watch last season and should still be fun this season too, especially if De Bruyne stays.

Dortmund begin the post-Klopp era with basically their full squad intact which makes a change from the last couple of seasons. Gundogan hopefully back to his best 2 years removed from his injury, and if Reus can manage a full season injury free it could be a monster year.

This season's new boys are FC Ingolstadt 04 and SV Darmstadt 98.

Fabian Schär to Hoffenheim for £2.8m looks like great business.

This season's new boys are FC Ingolstadt 04 and SV Darmstadt 98

Half-time teamtalk at SV Darmstadt 98

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02671/Stockhausen2_2671932b.jpg

And Ingolstadt back in the limelight after 40 odd years....

http://cdn29.us3.fansshare.com/pictures/pioniereiningolstadt/rainer-werner-fassbinder-pioniere-in-ingolstadt-movie-1153507997.jpg

Bayern: Neuer, Lahm, Benatia, Boateng, Alaba, Alonso, Vidal, Costa, Robben, Muller, Lewandowski

Hamburg: Adler, Diekmeier, Djourou, Spahic, Ostrzolek, Jung, Ekdal, Holtby, Gregoritsch, Illicevic, Schipplock

thiago and gotze on the bench. lovely to see robben back in action.

Hamburg's kit a v fetching shade of blue imo.

simple set play, alonso dinks it ino the box, benatia heads it into the net unmarked from 6 yards. lot of possession but few chances for bayern until then.

rout
lewandowski 2-0
muller 3-0 (great costa ball)
muller 4-0

still hamburg lost this 8-0 last season so they've improved

Dortmund looking excellent. 2-0 after 22mins vs Borussia MG. Reus and Aubameyang, plus one from Derek ruled out (maybe harshly) for offside.

dortmund have been absolutely superb in the first 20 mins vs Gladbach. Reus and Aubameyang, 2 nil, and another goal harshly ruled out for offside.

still dodgy at defending corners though.

lol xp

should have been the third there from reus

fantastic third goal, nice advantage played, derek gets his goal

i fucking love gundogan

derek with the 4th. demolition.

mkhitaryan couldn't finish to save his life last season, but been flawless so far.

ahhh kagawa just misses out on what would have been a beauty

desperately trying to find the 'like' button on tom's darmstadt post

Voland scored against Bayern in what I think was six seconds. Terrible mistake by Alaba.

2nd half of this was fantastic stuff. Douglas Costa was incredible just like last week, Muller continues to be extraordinary with his ridiculous energy levels and all round menace. Lewandowski came on midway through the half and looked razor sharp scoring the winner in the last minute (typical Bayern).

Boateng hacked someone down -yellow card. Ensuing free kick he handled the ball whilst in the wall - 2nd yellow, off, penalty. Polanski hit the inside of the post and out, this was at 1-1. Great stuff.

somehow ingolstadt-dortmund still level after 30 mins. dortmund have missed at least 4 really good chances, reus with the worst miss of the lot.

hamburg p fortunate to win last night, stuttgart well on top until their red card. stuttgart's away kit A++ btw.

dortmund's new DM 19 yr old weigl looked class last week and again today.

v sloppy start to the half from dortmund

lol 30 secs later they score, the unlikely ginter playing RB today with a cool finish

that was nice. my old German professor was an obsessed Dortmund fan, so I kinda pull for them

welp that was fast

unfortunate pen to concede, thought reus had missed for a second there

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0krE7GsOvss/VZF-og5tz2I/AAAAAAAAmQ4/AdyorJD-ROs/s450/vfb-stuttgart-15-16-third-kit%2B%25281%2529.jpg

btw the stuttgart kit i thought was sweet turns out to be their 3rd kit not their away kit.

thought last weeks performance at dortmund was a one off blip but gladbach have been comfortably 2nd best away at mainz today, lucky to survive until the 40th minute but have fallen behind just before half-time.

at home to mainz

hazard the younger just missed a p good chance for gladbach

super goal from herrmann, lovely build up. 1-1

Wolfsburg getting Draxler is good stuff, looking frwd to seeing what he can do in a functional team with a competent manager.

Dante sat on the bench whilst Xabi Alonso played CB was p funny on Saturday. Douglas Costa still fire.

Thomas Muller on why he declined to take the penalty vs Leverkusen that could have secured his hat-trick and instead let Robben take it - sometimes you have to feed the sharks a fish.

Lewandowski just scored 4 goals in 7 minutes

6 minutes apparently

now 5!

5 in 9 minutes, he's slowing down what a slacker

wtf. dante must have some straight semi final horror flashbacks by now.

https://streamable.com/p9at
https://streamable.com/1d81
https://streamable.com/kaoo
https://streamable.com/zmsi
https://streamable.com/1mk1

literal mic drop at the end of the fifth

https://vine.co/v/ePjI3tFP9nr

the fifth goal is some comic-book shit

would u say it was some dopeass comic book shit

assuredly

straight fire, lj

To me he is no more than just an overrated jerk who scores athletically dead emotionally dry goals

Wolfsburg played so well in the first half. Comfortably kept Bayern at arms length, scored a good goal through Caligiuri, hit the post from the halfway line after Neuer was dispossessed in midfield. Then at half time on comes Lewandowski and carnage ensues.His 2nd was p sweet but the 5th is just ridiculous.

Nice to see Draxler rediscovering his form now that he' s escaped the clutches of rotten managers.

Monchengladbach really taking it out on Augsburg. 4-0 up after twenty minutes.

Lucien Favre must be thinking FFS.

Hoffenheim more than holding there own vs Dortmund. Volland has been immense

As I type that Rudy puts Hoffenheim one up.

Dortmund strangely subdued.

lord i forgot all about kevin volland when rejecting that thread idea

Vargas off the post for what would have been two nil. He's been p good.

Reus hooked, he hasn't been good. Gundogan on :)

Dortmund level.

Aubamayang has scored in every league game so far this season

Ramos misses a sitter.

Do we have a La Liga thread? Cos Aspas has scored a brace vs Barca and Celta are winning 4-1.

decent goals too

https://vine.co/v/ePEqHdUTjtd

http://gfycat.com/NeatFirmHanumanmonkey

Dortmund way better with Gundogan on the pitch but a draw it is.

First Aspas goal is beautiful.

bonnie 'prince' billy with the equalizer for darmstadt

(badly) blown penalty in stoppage time

Bayern Munich Dortmund match heating up. 2-1 Bayern!

5-1. what the everloving fuck

hate to break it to you but bayern say drawing 1-1 rn would be more deserving of that profane epithet

was more the comical way it unfolded, with two goals coming on ridiculously amateurish defensive lapses

http://www.whoscored.com/News/9wsnsjfp2ec-gvvhztzqiq/Show/Ancelotti-agrees-to-take-over-at-Bayern

huh

Offside Bremen goal vs Frankfurt looks like keeping them up and putting Frankfurt into the relegation playoff.