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Week 1 Bundesliga Power Rankings
1. Borussia Dortmund (1-0-0)
Dominating Performance against Augsburg despite giving up the first goal as Dortmund were able to score five unanswered while attempting 22 shots with 10 on target while Augsburg only had one shot on target. Great game from 19 year old Jadon Sancho upfront.
2. Red Bull Leipzig (1-0-0)
Leipzig’s front unit of Timo Werner, Marcel Halstenberg and Marcel Sabitzer were on fire in this match as they consistently gave the Union Berlin defense problems. Besides the 4-0 victory they held a significant possession advantage at 64% and they held Berlin to only two shots on target.
3. Bayer Leverkusen (1-0-0)
Yes the score was close at 3-2 over Paderborn but Leverkusen showed a lot of good signs in this match. Kai Havertz continues to impress as the 20 year old scored a goal while veterans like Kevin Volland, Sven Bender and Julian Baumgartlinger were very involved. My concerns are with the defensive play as Leverkusen ran a 3-4-3 in this match and both conceding goals were a direct result of limited support to help out their keeper.
4. VfL Wolfsburg (1-0-0)
It wasn’t a dominant victory but Wolfsburg continue to get the job done as they beat FC Koln 2-1 with the lone conceding goal by FC Koln coming in stoppage time. Max Arnold had a brilliant goal in this game and Wolfsburg seemed to play very composed in their victory.
5. SC Freiburg (1-0-0)
This was fun to watch as Freiburg exploded for three goals in less than 8 minutes to close the second half and win 3-0 over Mainz 05. The game was very close through 80 minutes but Lucas Holer broke through in the 81st minute and then Freiburg couldn’t be stopped. The 4-2-2-2 formation they ran against Mainz was interesting and I want to see them continue this success next week against Paderborn.
6. Fortuna Dusseldorf (1-0-0)
The recently promoted team managed to hang on for a 3-1 victory over Werder Bremen despite being out played in large portions of the match. Key goals by Kenan Karaman and Kaan Ayhan were the difference makers and a massive game in net by keeper Zack Steffen. Their possession numbers were down at 33% but they managed seven shots on target.
7. Eintracht Frankfurt (1-0-0)
A goal under a minute into the match by Martin Hinteregger was the difference maker as Frankfurt get a key victory over Hoffenheim 1-0. There were a lot of tense moments for the Frankfurt team during this match as the game was nearly tied but this team found a way to get the win and they could be a darkhorse moving forward.
8. Borussia Monchengladbach (0-1-0)
It wasn’t a particularly exciting match but Borussia Monchengladbach played to a draw against Schalke 04 with the final score 0-0. Monchengladbach seemed to be in control of the scoring chances with four shots on target to one and the possession numbers were in their favour at 60%. The defensive group on this team lead by goalkeeper Yann Sommer with defenders Matthias Ginter and Nico Elvedi are going to frustrate a lot of teams.
9. Bayern Munich (0-1-0)
The favourites of the league managed to survive a scare from Hertha BSC with a 2-2 tie but Bayern were still dictating the pace the majority of the match. The possession numbers were 71% for Bayern and they had 17 shot attempts with 7 on target. Robert Lewandowski starts the season right were he left off as he scored two goals but the defense of Bayern Munich has to be better next week.
10. Hertha BSC (0-1-0)
Marko Grujic’s goal in the 38th minute to give Hertha the 2-1 lead over Bayern was almost enough but a mistake by Grujic in the second half lead to a penalty goal by Lewandowski for the tie. Hertha was largely out played during this match but this team has a lot of potential with players like Grujic, Niklas Stark, Davie Selke and veterans like Vedad Ibisevic and Vladimir Darida.
11. Schalke 04 (0-1-0)
It was an uninspired performance by Schalke this week as they only managed one shot on target and they let Monchengladbach dictate a lot of the play. Schalke still walked away with a 0-0 draw and their defensive unit clearly held up but they need more offense from players like Daniel Caligiuri, Benito Raman and Guido Burgstaller.
12. Hoffenheim (0-0-1)
A conceded goal in the 1st minute of action against Frankfurt was the difference maker as Hoffenheim were unable to find a way back into the game as they lost 1-0. It was interesting to watch because despite holding a 69% possession advantage the majority of the scoring chances went to Frankfurt on the counter attack and in short bursts of energy. Hoffenheim needs to work on their game plan and execution at the offensive end as they only managed one shot on target.
13. FC Koln (0-0-1)
A late stoppage time goal by Simon Terodde wasn’t enough as FC Koln fell 2-1 to Wolfsburg in a fairly competitive match. Timo Horn as expected made some big saves and Jonas Hector, Anthony Modeste and Marco Hoger continue to drive the Koln team. They will be competitive all season as they are a very well structured and talented group.
14. Werder Bremen (0-0-1)
Yes they lost 3-1 to Fortuna Dusseldorf but Werder Bremen played a fairly solid game and they just ran into a strong defensive team and a great goaltending performance by Zack Steffen. Bremen had 10 shots on target and held possession 67% of the time with nine more corner attempts than there opponent. The team will be exciting with the addition of Omer Toprak and another season of Yuya Osako and Nuri Sahin.
15. Mainz 05 (0-0-1)
A 3-0 loss against SC Freiburg shouldn’t give Mainz much confidence moving forward this season but the game was tied 0-0 heading into the 80th minute with possession and shot numbers fairly similar. Then in the final 10 minutes the Mainz defense collapsed as they conceded three goals and they enter next week against Monchengladbach still looking for their first goal.
16. SC Paderborn 07 (0-0-1)
They fought well against Bayer Leverkusen in a 3-2 loss as they had plenty of chances in the first half with Sven Michel and Streli Mamba capitalizing. The second half for Paderborn was poor as they were thoroughly outplayed and the possession numbers managed to move up to 74% by the end of the match in favour of Leverkusen. Paderborn does do a good job of clogging up shooting lanes and getting back defensively but they can’t expect to win by sitting in their defensive end for the majority of the match.
17. Union Berlin (0-0-1)
Despite the fact they lost 4-0, I don’t think Union Berlin can be upset with how they played against Leipzig as they had a couple good scoring opportunities. The goals conceded by Berlin were more about the quality of offense than the lack of defense as all four goals by Leipzig were world class finishes. I expect big things in their next game against Augsburg.
18. FC Augsburg (0-0-1)
This was a horrendous performance by Augsburg as they continued to make mistake after mistake in their own end against Dortmund as they conceded five goals. This was probably one of the worst games of goalkeeper Tomas Koubek’s career as he was responsible for three of the goals. The possession numbers were 79% for Dortmund and Dortmund had ten shots on target in comparison to one shot for Augsburg. This team needs to wake up for their next game against Union Berlin.