Looking at the game plan before the season, one would hardly have expected such an explosive situation on this Bundesliga Sunday. Borussia Dortmund take on leaders Union Berlin and FC Bayern host second-placed SC Freiburg. Hats off to this pair of leaders who have been stuck there for a good quarter of the season now and he almost got comfortable in this comfortable situation. Some are already comparing Union and Freiburg to Leicester City, which surprisingly won the Premier League title in 2016. I wouldn’t go that far.
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It would be great for the attractiveness of the Bundesliga – and I have to repeat it: great – if one of the two outsiders wins the German championship. And honestly: after FC Bayern’s ten straight titles, that’s what I want from the bottom of my heart. But it won’t happen that way. Monaco remains the favorite and I hope BVB have at least one head-to-head match. Why can’t I believe in the people of Berlin or Freiburg? Both teams have very good staff by their standards, but overall the quality won’t be enough to stand up to the best clubs in the long run. Especially given the size of the squad, the weight of the Europa League will make itself felt in the end.
But that doesn’t mean I’ll cancel the surprise teams. On the contrary: as things stand at the moment, I really think they can qualify for the Champions League. It would be a good thing that the two coaches in particular would have absolutely deserved. Urs Fischer of Union and Christian Streich of SCF have been doing brilliant work for years. What I particularly like is that they always focus on the next task at hand and don’t build castles in the air with future scenarios. They are a perfect match for their current employers.
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The developments of Union and Freiburg are no coincidence
Union and Freiburg are also operating sustainably and appear to be well positioned for the next few years. Berliners are planning to expand the An der Alten Försterei stadium and there is already a new arena in Breisgau. In addition, both clubs act wisely on the player market, capture the departure of the best players and regularly generate a transfer advantage. Your current developments are therefore no coincidence.
But if you ask me if either club has what it takes to establish itself as the third force in the Bundesliga, I have to say no. There are simply other clubs that have better conditions and potential. To see how to make the most of existing opportunities, one can only recommend VfL Wolfsburg, Bayer Leverkusen & Co. to look at Berlin and Freiburg right now.
