Previewing German clubs in Europe this season
The draws are out for Europe’s premier club competitions and top teams from the continent will be contesting each other starting Tuesday, 14th September. We have had some major developments this season, starting with the newly created UEFA Europa Conference League (UECL). The Conference League promises an opportunity for more clubs to showcase their style of football on the European stage. On the ground level, UEFA has decided to abolish the away goal rules. While this decision has generated mixed responses among fans, its actual impact can only be understood once we get into the knockout rounds.
Coming to Germany now, seven teams from the Bundesliga will be participating in Europe this season, four in UCL, two in UEL, and one in UECL. We’ll be previewing each one of them, looking at their chances of progress, and discussing key individuals to look out for.
UEFA Champions League (UCL)
Bayern Munich
The 6-time European Champions will enter the competition as one of the favorites. They are placed in a group that includes Barcelona, Benfica, and Dynamo Kyiv. On paper, this might look like an easy draw for Bayern and Barcelona. But in Benfica and Dynamo, we have two European veterans who are more than capable of causing an upset. Barcelona are going through some troubled times financially, but they have made a strong start to the season and possess genuine match-winners like Memphis Depay.
With that being said, Bayern should fancy their chances of not just proceeding to the knockout stages but doing so by topping the group. A major area of concern, though, will be their relatively inexperienced defense that has lost the services of David Alaba, Jerome Boateng, and Javi Martinez this season.
Look out for — Jamal Musiala (Germany, 18)
It’s never easy for a teenager to make his way into Bayern’s star-studded first team. But Jamal Musiala has somehow done it, that too, by keeping big-money signing Leroy Sane on the bench. The 18-year-old attacking midfielder, who can play both at center and wide, has become a fan favorite at the Allianz Arena. Musiala is an intelligent player with a good understanding of the game. His technical adeptness allows him to dribble past opponents with ease while also creating and finishing chances. Musiala brings exuberance to the side, always looking for the ball and trying to make things happen. Bundesliga fans are already in awe of him, it’s time others are too.
Borussia Dortmund
On paper, Dortmund might seem lucky to find themselves without any other side from the top four leagues. But their group, which also consists of Ajax, Sporting CP, and Besiktas, who are all reigning champions in their respective leagues, is deceptively competitive if not strong. Any of these teams can overcome the other ones on a good day. The BVB are dearly missing Mats Hummels, whose absence (from injury) has made their defense look very shaky at times.
Dortmund, however, are well experienced at playing in Europe’s grandest stage and have good squad depth to fight on multiple fronts. They have also managed to retain Erling Haaland and bring in Donyell Malen, which should be enough to take them past the group stage.
Look out for — Jude Bellingham (England, 18)
It is difficult to talk about just one name for a club like Dortmund which is brimming with so much talent. But if we had to pick one, it would be Jude Bellingham, who at just 17 took to Bundesliga like a duck to water. The English prodigy is on his way to becoming a complete box-to-box midfielder, astutely balancing his attacking and defensive responsibilities. As someone quite mature for his age, Bellingham is able to assert control over the game and his quick thinking allows Dortmund to excel in implementing counter-attacks. It is only a matter of time before any of the English giants came asking for him.
RB Leipzig
There is no such smokescreen for RB Leipzig, who have visibly found a very tough draw against two of the tournament favorites, Manchester City and Paris Saint Germain. Both sides made it to the semi-finals in the 2020–21 season, with City going a step further up. They have since reinforced their teams with some strong summer signings, especially PSG. Also part of this group is the Belgian champion, Club Brugge.
Leipzig did make it past a difficult group last time as well with PSG, Manchester United and Istanbul Basaksehir. But the odds against them are far stronger this time. Add to that their poor start to the season under a new manager and an early exit looks very plausible for the Red Bulls. Unless, of course, they are able to cause an upset with their intense style of play.
Look out for — Dominik Szoboszlai (Hungary, 20)
Szoboszlai is part of a long list of players, including Gulasci, Upamecano and Keita, to join Leipzig from their sister club RB Salsburg. The Hungarian Wunderkind excels at both assisting and scoring. He is excellent at set-pieces and has the ability to find the net from distance. Szoboszlai’s excellent vision and a wide array of passing options give him the ability to create opportunities out of thin air. So good was he in Austria, that Leipzig decided to sign him for a Hungarian record transfer fee during the winter of 20–21. However, a long-term injury kept him out for the rest of the season, even the Euros. Having attained his optimum fitness level now, he makes a strong addition to a very exciting Leipzig forward lineup.
Wolfsburg
Wolfsburg, who narrowly made it to the top 4 at the expense of Frankfurt, will face Lille, RB Salzburg and Seville. The lack of traditional star power in this group is made up for by the unpredictability involved. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see any of the teams from this group make it to the knockout stages.
Coming to Wolfsburg this season, a lot of people were skeptical about giving the charge to Mark van Bommel. But his team is off to a perfect start in the Bundesliga, not dropping a single point yet. The Wolves have had a busy transfer market, signing names like Max Philipp, Lukas Nmecha, Sebastiaan Bornauw, and Luca Waldschmidt, who add a lot of depth to their lineup. Adding to this the fact that Lille and Salsburg have lost some key names this summer, I fancy Wolfburg to finish runners-up in the group behind Sevilla.
Look out for — Ridle Baku (Germany, 23)
Born Bote Nzuzi Baku, he was nicknamed “Ridle” by his father after former German Striker Karl Heinz Riedle. Unlike his namesake, though, Baku operates on the right flank, galloping up and down the pitch throughout the match. As a fullback, he is defensively solid while also lending a significant hand in the attack. Van Bommel, though, is using the German as a winger to exploit his pace and power up front to unsettle defenses. Baku was vital to Germany’s victory in the 2021 Euro U-21, even assisting the winning goal in the final. But his absence from Germany’s Euro squad raised a few eyebrows after many considered him the answer to Die Mannschaft’s right-back problem. Baku also played a key role in getting Wolfburg a Champions League berth, earning him a place in the Bundesliga Team of the Season 2021–22.
UEFA Europa League (UEL)
Some changes have been made in the format of UEL. Instead of 12, we have 8 groups this time at the initial stage. There wouldn’t be a Round of 32 anymore. We will head directly to Round of 16, where the first 8 teams will be winners of each UEL group. For the rest of the 8 places, UEL runners-up will face 3rd placed teams from UCL in a knockout round.
Eintracht Frankfurt
Frankfurt were cruising into a top-4 finish last season when, towards the end, they dropped points in three consecutive matches, eventually missing out on a UCL spot by just one point. To further rub salt into the wound, both Adi Hutter, their manager and Andre Silva, their talismanic forward, left the team at the end of the season. Their new season has started abysmally, losing 2–5 to Dortmund on the opening day followed by two draws.
Frankfurt is placed alongside Greek Champions Olympiacos, Fenerbache and Antwerp in UEL. Not the toughest of groups, but looking at their current situation I don’t feel very optimistic about Frankfurt’s chances. At best, they might be able to finish runners-up after Olympiacos, which means they face a 3rd place team from UCL for an R16 spot. But even for that to happen, they need someone to fill the boots of Andre Silva, who scored 40% of their goals last season.
Look out for — Jens Petter Hauge (Norway, 21)
Turns out Haaland isn’t the only exciting youngster from Norway playing in the Bundesliga. In 2020, Hauge helped his club Bodø/Glimt win their first-ever Norwegian top division title with 14 goals and 8 assists in the league. The same year, AC Milan signed him after his impressive outing against them in the UEL Qualifications. Currently on loan from Milan, the winger has scored twice in three Bundesliga appearances for Frankfurt. But there is more to his game than just scoring. Hauge is a highly capable ball progressor who likes to take on players directly. He is good at carrying counterattacks and can be very effective in tight spaces. Frankfurt fans will be hoping that Hauge steps up to fill the void left by Silva’s departure.
Bayer Leverkusen
Like Frankfurt, Leverkusen too lost one of its top goalscorers from last season, Leon Bailey, to Aston Villa. The difference, however, is that Bayer didn’t really depend on just one player for goals and got a much better deal for Bailey. In fact, they had a pretty good transfer summer, signing promising young talents like Odilon Kossounou and Amine Adil. This, accompanied by a great start to the new season, has led some to consider it genuine title contenders this season. But these are just initial days, and Leverkusen has a history of dropping the ball when it matters.
Leverkusen is currently in a very good spot in terms of team strength and momentum. But it finds itself in a tricky group with Scottish heavyweights Celtic, Hungarian champions Ferencvaros and Manuel Pellegrini’s Real Betis. Among these, Betis is the one who I feel can trouble Leverkusen the most. Still, I definitely see them finishing among the top 2 in the group, quite possibly the group leaders too.
Look out for — Florian Wirtz (Germany, 18)
Like Dortmund, there are a number of exciting options to choose from in Leverkusen. We could have easily gone for Moussa Diaby, Jeremie Frimpong or Paulinho. Rather, let’s talk about the 18-year-old dubbed as the next Kai Havertz. Wirtz is a highly creative midfielder with excellent dribbling skills. He is deceptively quick and can be very crafty with the ball at his feet. Unlike his Chelsea counterpart, Wirtz starts slightly deeper from midfield. But that doesn’t mean he can’t find the net. In the semifinals of Euro U-21 this year, Wirtz scored twice in the opening eight minutes against the Netherlands. More such performances and he could also make a strong case for a spot in Germany’s 2022 World Cup Squad.
UEFA Europa Conference League (UECL)
Just like UCL and UEL, teams will play in groups of eight here too. Group leaders will progress directly to Round of 16. For the rest of the knockout slots, runners-up from UECL will face off 3rd place teams from UEL.
Union Berlin
Union Berlin’s meteoric rise is the stuff of legend. While not hardcore rivals, Union, for most of its existence, has lived under the shadow of Hertha Berlin. It was only after a relegation playoff win against Stuttgart in 2019 that Union got promoted to Bundesliga for the first time. That is in itself a big achievement for a former East German club, but the story doesn’t end there. On the final matchday of the 2020–21 season, Union came from behind to win against RB Leipzig in injury time courtesy of a Max Kruse header. This placed them one point ahead of traditional giants Borussia Monchengladbach, confirming their last spot for Europe.
Union easily fended off Finnish club Kuopion Palloseura in the playoff round. But the group stage will be much tougher as they face Feyenoord, Slavia Prague, and Maccabi Haifa of Israel. Slavia, who reached Round of 16 of the Europa League in the last two seasons, will be the favorites in my opinion. Runners-up slots should be a good contest between Union and Feyenoord.
Look out for — Taiwo Awoniyi (Nigeria, 24)
Awoniyi was signed by Liverpool as a teenager but never got to play competitive football for them. After a series of loan spells across Europe, he permanently moved to Union this July. Often a hit and miss player in the past, Awoniyi finally seems to be blossoming in a strike partnership alongside veteran Max Kruse. The Nigerian has made a blistering start to the season, scoring five times in six games across all competitions. His performances against teams like Gladbach have grabbed a lot of eyeballs, including some Liverpool fans who are questioning their club’s decision of selling him. Playing for a club of Liverpool’s stature seems quite far-fetched for him right now. But Awoniyi, who is approaching his 25th birthday, still possesses a lot of untapped potential and UECL might just be the right litmus test for him.
