Contenders to win the 2011-12 Bundesliga title (Part 2)
Bayer Leverkusen
Werkself had an exquisite season last year as they finished runners-up behind Borussia Dortmund. The Factory Squad gathered 68 points and was at one point almost level with the Borussians on points. But some poor results in the
last few matches of the campaign made sure that they remained second. Leverkusen also gained an automatic qualification for the Group stages of the UEFA Champions League.
The club has always remained amongst the top sides in http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Germany-c2904 and have been in some very good form lately. Their second place finish last term may have come as a surprise for many as they lacked the quality to be amongst the top
two. But some good performances form youngsters and a great midfield sealed the finish.
However, the team’s prospects of challenging for the title this season have taken a huge blow as manager Jupp Heynckes joined rivals Bayern Munich this summer and also the departure of last season’s star performer http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Arturo-Vidal-c6760
to Juventus. Vidal was sensational last term in the centre of the park and the club will surely miss him.
There are some positives also from this summer’s transfer window as Andre Schurrle joined the ranks from http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/1-FSV-Mainz-05-c38166. He scored an impressive 15 goals for Mainz last season in a total of 34 appearances and also accumulated five assists
in the process. The winger is an exciting prospect for the future and his performances could be vital for the title surge.
Schalke 04
http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Ralf-c30492 Rangnick’s side may have underperformed in the previous campaign in the Bundesliga but there displays in the UEFA Champions League and DFB-Pokal were surely unforgettable. It’s hard to understand why Die Knappen were poor
in the league considering the quality they had in their squad and the performances they put in other competitions.
The http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Royal-95-c40387 Blues ended the season in a dismal 14th place with 40 points, a staggering 35 points behind the winners, Borussia Dortmund. The team were fortunate to avoid relegation as they were just four points clear of
Borussia Monchengladbach, who played the relegation play-off against http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/VfL-Bochum-c40880.
Schalke have been busy in this summer’s transfer market and have been able to acquire a host of players in the window which include Ralf Fahrmann, Ciprian Marica and http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Christian-Fuchs-c9078. But excluding Fuchs, none of the players in
touted to make a strong impact in this campaign. http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Ciprian-Marica-c9258 was released in the summer by Stuttgart and was bought on a free transfer whereas Fahrmann is called the Manuel Neuer replacement.
Die Knappen surely could have spent the money from the sale of http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Raul-c30652 was an excellent signing last season and he was the main source of goals throughout the season.
http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Klaas-Jan-Huntelaar-c21175 will have to find his form back if the club have any chances of challenging for the honours otherwise this season could be worse than the last one.
Potentially, there are four sides competing for the title this season which include Dortmund, Bayern, Leverkusen and Schalke but in the end it could well turn out to be a two horse race with Die Borussen and the Bavarians fighting
for the honours as they have some world-class players and two great managers.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and in no way represent Bettor.com's official editorial policy.
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