FC Bayern Munich: A Warm Welcome For Steve Mclaren, Cup Draw and More!

The Bundesliga is back! Bayern might not possess the best defence or the best strikers; however, when it comes to grit, it's a different story.

Bayern 2-1 Wolfsburg

Bayern beat Die Wolfe 2-1 in the first match of the new season. Toni Kroos and Thomas Mueller combined beautifully for the first goal. A Kroos pass in the box was turned in beautifully by Mueller. Bayern were utterly dominant in the first half and could have tripled their lead had Miro Klose, Mueller and Diego Contento taken their chances. Zvejdan Misimovic's entry in the second half turned the game on its head.

A corner from Misimovic found Edin Dzeko who headed in perfectly to equalize. Wolfsburg, thanks to Misimovic had plenty of open chances but failed to convert. Their physical style of play proved to be their undoing. They gave away plenty of free kicks in and around the box. In injury time, a Franck Ribery free kick found an unmarked Bastian Schweinsteiger at the far post. Schweinsteiger did not hit the post unlike last season; he scored to win it for Bayern.

Steve Mclaren decided to leave a player who was part of Bayern's youth system for four years and the senior squad for two years on the bench. Bayern would have perhaps gone on to crush lacklustre Wolfsburg had it not been for "Zwetschge." Perhaps, Misimovic is moving away from the club; otherwise Mclaren made a very poor decision. 

Bayern seemed out of sync in the second half. Thomas Mueller, despite scoring, gave an average performance. Toni Kroos has given better performances than the one he gave on Friday night. Miro Klose who has been very good in pre-season disappointed. He wasn't invincible; but his balls into the box and finishing weren't great to say the least. Mario Gomez did not impress when he came on either.

Daniel Van Buyten made a very good case for being dropped; he was good offensively but not defensively. Hans Jorg Butt's horrible throw eventually led to Wolfsburg's equalizer. Diego Contento was very good offensively and due to his pace did not get caught defensively. Contento has to watch his back sometimes as he will inevitably get caught out at least once in this season for moving forward too often.

Bastian Schweinsteiger and Mark Van Bommel played well. Schweinsteiger was his usual dominant self and capped off a very good performance with a goal. Franck Ribery was excellent; he gave Peter Pekarik a horrible time. However, Ribery tends to shoot at times when passing is a better option and that might cost Bayern in more difficult matches. Contento and Ribery can put great crosses into the ball. So unlike the previous season, crosses will perhaps come in from the left more often this season.

Steve Mclaren handing the captain's armband to Edin Dzeko might have something to do with trying to keep the Bosnian hitman in the club. At the moment, though, Mclaren will have a headache about his leftback. Pekarik was absolutely crushed by Ribery and Sascha Riether wasn't great either.

Bayern's next opponent is Kaiserslautern on Friday, the 27th of August.

DFB Pokal Draw

Bayern's opponents aren't happy and neither are Bayern. However, Werder, who have been drawn against Bayern will be the unhappier as Bayern will be at home at the Allianz Arena. Werder, though, played tough ties away from home in the 2008-09 season and won each and every one of them. However, on neutral ground in Berlin, Bayern gave Werder a thrashing in May. They beat the Green and Whites 4-0 to claim the Cup.

Argentine Misery

Martin Demichelis refused to play any part whatsoever in Bayern's game against Wolfsburg following the news that Louis Van Gaal opted for Daniel Van Buyten over him. He wants to leave Munich. Karl Heinz Rummenigge issued a statement saying that Demichelis would not be allowed to leave before the transfer window closes. However, Van Gaal came out and said that Demichelis is free to leave the Bavarian giants.

Jose Ernesto Sosa presumably has his bags packed as a deal for him with Napoli is almost completed.

Rival Watch

Hamburg 2-1 Schalke

A Ruud Van Nistelrooij double cancelled out a Jefferson Farfan masterpiece in Hamburg. Hamburg were by and far the better team following the first twenty minutes. However, the match remained scoreless at halftime and all the goals game in the second half. Benedikt Howedes, Schalke's youngster, was sent off for two reckless challenges.

Hamburg's midfield is undoubtedly one of the best in the league. Ze Roberto provided a fine assist for Nistelrooij's second and David Jarolim was the first to every loose ball on the pitch. Jonathon Pitroipa played a very good second half while Elijero Elia gave a good display.

Schalke's defence really lacked organization- Howedes gave a very poor display and Christoph Metzelder did not play a great game. The full backs weren't great either—Schalke seemed to be missing Rafinha and Westermann already. However, two bright lights in Schalke's team were Ivan Rakitic and Jefferson Farfan. They combined excellently for Schalke's only goal of the match. Raul, perhaps due to a fitness problem was hardly seen and will perhaps need time to settle into German football. He fully has his coach, Felix Magath's backing.

Borussia Dortmund 0-2 Bayer Leverkusen

Leverkusen truly gave a very good performance. The defence withstood pressure from Dortmund towards the end very well. Their offence was excellent. Tranquillo Barnetta blasted the ball into the net for the first goal and Renato Augusto scored a beautiful second after making his way past three Dortmund players. Leverkusen are truly the most technically gifted side of the Bundesliga and they really showed it.

That's about it for today. The standings after the first matchday look funny though with Hoffenheim topping the table following a 4-1 win over Werder. Kaiserslautern are second following a 3-1 victory over Koeln and St Pauli are third following a 3-1 victory over SC Freiburg.