Bundesliga 23/24 Mid-Season Report Card - Part 1
EXCLUSIVE: As the dust settles on a breathless first half of the Bundesliga season, beIN runs its eye over the performance of the top nine clubs in the first part of our Bundesliga mid-season report card.
The school of Bundesliga football is on its winter break after a thoroughly entertaining start to the season. Some students thrived under the pressures this semester provided, while others failed to make a significant impression and will be playing catch-up in 2024. There have been many surprises in the German top flight so far season; and with 16 rounds to go, we are set for a thrilling back half of the campaign.
With that in mind, let’s see how the top nine clubs faired during the Hinrunde and whether they passed their first significant examination.
Bayer Leverkusen
Heading into the 23/24 campaign, the expectation in Leverkusen was to build upon the sixth-placed finish in 2022-2023. With a full pre-season under Xabi Alonso, Leverkusen was extremely busy in the transfer window, bringing in Victor Boniface, Alejandro Grimaldo (on a free) and former Arsenal star Granit Xhaka. These three have played a significant role in ensuring ‘Die Werkself’ enter the Winter break on top of the table.
Leverkusen has the most frugal backline in the league, thanks to a well- structured defensive system, with only 12 goals conceded from the opening 16 games. Leverkusen failed to win only three games this season in the Bundesliga, with those coming against teams in the top five: Bayern Munich, Stuttgart, and Borussia Dortmund.
Among all the excitement of what has been a stellar campaign to date, Leverkusen’s biggest test lies ahead, with several key players heading to AFCON in January: Boniface (Nigeria), Edmond Taposoba (Burkina Faso), Odilon Koussounou (Ivory Coast) and Amine Adli (Morocco). This period will be vital in Leverkusen’s quest for the Meisterschale.
The road ahead is daunting yet exciting as Leverkusen hopes to finally drop the “Neverkusen” moniker that has plagued the club for a significant period of its history.
Grade: A+
Key Fixtures
11th February vs Bayern Munich (KO 4:30am AEST | 6:30am NZST)
19th - 22nd April @ Borussia Dortmund (KO TBC)
26th - 29th April vs Stuttgart (KO TBC)
3rd - 6th May @ Eintracht Frankfurt (KO TBC)
18th May vs Augsburg (KO 11:30pm AEST | 19th May 1:30am NZST)
Teacher’s comment: Xabi Alonso’s growth as coach is a big reason why Bayer Leverkusen remains unbeaten in the Bundesliga. Shrewd recruiting and an enjoyable style have seen Leverkusen go from European qualifying scrappers to genuine contenders for the Bundesliga title.
Bayern Munich
Not content with 11 straight years of league domination, Bayern Munich went out and bought England captain Harry Kane. The star striker has wasted no time filling the Lewandowski-sized hole in ‘Die Bayern’ forward line, with 21 goals across the first 16 matches of the season. The 31 year-old is on track to take home the Torjägerkanone in his first season, along with a Bundesliga record for goals-scored if he can stay on this trajectory.
Kane is on track to score 44 goals this season, which would be three better than the single-season goal-scoring record set by Robert Lewandowski during 2020/21. Kane has more goals than Wolfsburg, Bochum, Union Berlin, Mainz, Köln and Darmstadt.
Kane’s heroics aside, Bayern has had an mixed campaign to date. From the disappointment of being knocked out of the DFB Pokal second round by third division side Saarbrücken, dominating Dortmund in Der Klassiker to the shock 5-1 defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt, the previously-infallible Bayern has shown vulnerabilities that can be exposed by the good sides.
Grade: A
Key Fixtures
4th February vs Borussia Mönchengladbach (KO 1:30am AEST | 3:30am NZST)
11th February @ Bayer Leverkusen (KO 4:30am AEST | 6:30am NZST)
25th February vs RB Leipzig (KO 4:30am AEST | 6:30am NZST)
30th March – 1st April vs Borussia Dortmund (KO TBC)
3rd – 6th May @ Stuttgart (KO TBC)
Teacher's comment: Despite only losing once in its opening 16 games, Bayern is again playing catch-up in the race for the title. The difference is that it has Kane. In every one of Bayern's 33 Bundesliga titles, it had an elite number-9 leading the way.
Gerd Müller, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Roland Wohlfarth, Luca Toni, Mario Gomez, and Lewandowski all live in Bayern's infamy. Kane can join these illustrious names immediately by being the league's top scorer and leading Bayern to the title. But it won’t be as straightforward as Bayern fans may have hoped, as the opening four months of the season have shown.
Stuttgart
This time last season, Stuttgart was 15th and in danger of relegation to 2. Bundesliga. Die Schwaben saved their best until the last two matches of the season, silencing Hamburger SV 6-1 on aggregate in their promotion/relegation play-off tie. It would be a sign of things to come.
Fast forward six months and Stuttgart sits third off the back of a sumptuous blend of attacking football. Revelatory duo Serhou Guirassy and on-loan Brighton & Hove Albion attacker Deniz Undav have spearheaded Stuttgart’s surge into Champions League contention. The duo has combined for 26 goals of their team’s 37 goals this season.
The turnaround in Stuttgart’s fortune comes down to their manager, Sebastian Hoeneß. Hoeneß comes from a rich German footballing family, with his father Dieter a former German international and his Uncle Uli part of the furniture at Bayern Munich. While his success at the helm of Bayern Munich II caught the attention of fellow Bundesliga side Hoffenheim, Hoeneß lasted two seasons before being axed. It’s evident in the immediate phase that Hoeneß has learned from his first opportunity at the big time and is making the most of turning waking the sleeping giant.
Grade: A+
Key Fixtures
4th February @ Freiburg (KO 1:30am AEST | 3:30am NZST)
17th March @ Hoffenheim (KO 4:30am AEST | 6:30am NZST)
5th - 8th April @ Borussia Dortmund (KO TBC)
26th - 29th April @ Bayer Leverkusen (KO TBC)
3rd - 6th May vs Bayern Munich (KO TBC)
Teacher’s comment: Sebastian Hoeness has done a remarkable job turning Stuttgart from relegation-bound to European contender, resurrecting the careers of Guirassy and goalkeeper Alexander Nübel in the process. The question will be whether Stuttgart can sustain its impressive first half of the season. If it can, Stuttgart could be a dark horse to win its first Bundesliga title since 2007. Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich can ill-afford to slip up.
RB Leipzig
Die Roten Bullen entered the season full hope that they could finally get over the hump and challenge for the Bundesliga title. They made several ambitious moves during the summer in keeping with their youth-minded transfer strategy, adding PSG’s Xavi Simons on-loan, Lens striker Loïs Openda and Lyon’s Castello Lukeba, who have all shined over the first 16 matches.
The season started perfectly for Marco Rose’s side, beating Bayern Munich in the DFL Super Cup. For some, this was a signal of intent from Leipzig, who showed once more it could match it with the champion. A week later Leipzig was given a reality check, beaten by Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen on the opening matchday of the season.
Highlights of Leipzig’s first half include taking a point against Bayern at home, an impressive away win in Dortmund and a dominant 5-1 victory over Stuttgart. It’s the nature of the defeats that have left a lot to be desired. A 2-0 reverse at Mainz and losses to Wolfsburg in the league and DFB pokal point to a team with too great a gap between its best and its worst.
If Leipzig is to make a play at the Meisterschale, it must take the points on offer against the teams below it on the table, while continuing to aim up against the other contenders.
Grade: B+
Key Fixtures
5th February vs Union Berlin (KO 3:30am AEST | 5:30am NZST)
25th February @ Bayern Munich (KO 4:30am AEST | 6:30am NZST)
26th - 29th April vs Borussia Dortmund (KO TBC)
3rd - 6th May @ Hoffenheim (KO TBC)
18th May @ Eintracht Frankfurt (KO 11:30pm AEST | 19th May 1:30am NZST)
Teacher’s comment: The feeling around RB Leipzig is that it should be closer to Leverkusen and Bayern. With a five-point gap to Bayern and nine to Leverkusen, the Bundesliga title is still up for grabs. More consistency is needed from this young, ultra-talented Leipzig side.
Borussia Dortmund
Are ‘die Schwarzgelben’ still haunted by that final day draw against Mainz that cost them a first Bundesliga title in 11 years?
The first half of the 23/24 season would suggest the answer is a resounding ‘yes’. Eerily, Mainz signed off on the first half of the new season with another draw at Dortmund in a result that opened up a five-point gap between Edin Terzic’s men and fourth-placed Leipzig.
Mainz isn’t the only team conspiring to frustrate BVB. Dortmund squandered a 2-0 home lead promoted Heidenheim. Another draw, against Augsburg, coupled with the Maoinz stalemate, have Dortmund on the brink of being out of the title picture. Dortmund’s results against the other teams in the top five make for more sober reading. Terzic’s men have taken a solitary point from the 12 on offer against their title rivals, including a chastening 4-0 loss to Der Klassiker foe Bayern Munich.
Grade: C+
Key Fixtures
18th March vs Eintracht Frankfurt (KO 3:30am AEST | 5:30am NZST)
30th March - 1st April vs Bayern Munich (KO TBC)
5th - 8th April vs Stuttgart (KO TBC)
19th - 22nd April vs Bayer Leverkusen (KO TBC)
26th - 29th April @ RB Leipzig (KO TBC)
Teacher's comment: With a gap of 15 points to league leader Bayer Leverkusen, reaching the Champions League places should now be Dortmund’s number-one priority. Terzic’s future at the helm may well depend on it.
Eintracht Frankfurt
Change was the word for Eintracht Frankfurt heading into the new season. Manager Oliver Glasner, who led the club to its first Europa League title, finished his time in Frankfurt. Up-and-coming Dino Toppmöller was tasked with keeping ‘Die Adler’ in the hunt for European qualification.
Life under Toppmöller hasn’t been without its growing pains in his first season. Frankfurt have shown it can be a force to be reckoned with if it can string together 90 flawless minutes. This was most evident when it dispatched Bayern Munich in a 5-1 rout at home.
That result notwithstanding, losses to Augsburg and Wolfsburg show there is still plenty for Eintracht Frankfurt to build on.
Someone who has risen to the occasion is striker Omar Marmoush. Brought in to replace PSG-bound Randal Kolo-Muani, thesilky-skilled Egyptian with a killer shot has developed into a robust offensive option with seven goals from 14 league appearances.
Grade: B
Key Fixtures
18th March @ Borussia Dortmund (KO 3:30am AEST | 5:30am NZST)
12th - 15th April @ Stuttgart (KO TBC)
26th - 29th April @ Bayern Munich (KO TBC)
3rd - 6th May vs Bayer Leverkusen (KO TBC)
18th May vs RB Leipzig (KO 11:30pm AEST | 19th May 1:30am NZST)
Teacher’s comment: Frankfurt should be happy with its first half of the season. Despite the odd blip in the road, the Eagles have shown that their best is good enough to be in contention for a European place. The question is whether Frankfurt can find another goal-scoring output to replace Marmoush while he’s at AFCON.
Hoffenheim
The reality of Hoffenheim no longer being a threat to European qualification was realised last season when the club from the little village of Sinsheim flirted intensely with relegation. A stretch of 14 games without victory had Hoffenheim sitting rock-bottom after Matchday 14. Fortunately for ‘Der Blau’, three wins on the bounce against Hertha, Werder Bremen and Schalke turned the tide for Pellegrino Matarazzo.
This season has been one of building for renewed long-term stability in the Bundesliga. Oliver Baumann continues to be a rock in goal, while Kevin Vogt and former USA international John Anthony Brooks help anchor the defence, along with former on-loan Liverpool defender Ozan Kabak. A player who has impressed is Maximilian Beier. The striker spent two seasons on loan with 2. Bundesliga club Hannover, refining his craft in preparation for his opportunity in the Bundesliga, which he’s taken with both hands.
While Hoffenheim hasn’t had much success at the Pre-Zero Arena this season - only winning twice, against Wolfsburg and Bochum - away from home, it has thrived, winning five of their eight games including impressive victories over FC Union Berlin and high-flying Stuttgart.
Grade: B+
Key Fixtures
5th February @ Wolfsburg (KO 1:30am AEST | 3:30am NZST)
26th February @ Borussia Dortmund (KO 3:30am AEST | 5:30am NZST)
17th March vs Stuttgart (KO 4:30am AEST | 6:30am NZST)
3rd - 6th May vs RB Leipzig (KO TBC)
18th May vs Bayern Munich (KO 11:30pm AEST | 19th May 1:30am NZST)
Teacher’s comment: The emergence of Beier has helped Hoffenheim regain a semblance of confidence that the Sinsheim side had lost over the past few seasons. But its defence is a work in progress. Hoffenheim has the worst defensive record among the top seven teams. This must be rectified should Hoffenheim’s ambitions of European football be recognised.
Freiburg
When you think about Freiburg, one person comes to mind: manager Christian Streich.
Streich is in his 12th year with Freiburg, and once again, the Breisgau Braziliansare primed for another run at Europe, entering the winter break in eighth. Despite losing goalkeeper Mark Flekken to Premier League side Brentford, young up-and-coming shot-stopper Noah Atubolu has filled the gap admirably.
Freiburg’s season to this point can be split into two halves: encouraging wins over fellow mid-table aspirants Hoffenheim, Wolfsburg, and Augsburg. Demoralising defeats to Stuttgart, Borussia Dortmund and Bayern. Some January squad reinforcement could be just the tonic for Freiburg to mount a serious charge at a top-five finish.
Grade: B
Key Fixtures
4th February vs Stuttgart (KO 1:30am AEST | 3:30am NZST)
10th February @ Borussia Dortmund (KO 6:30am AEST | 8:30am NZST)
2nd March vs Bayern Munich (KO 6:30am AEST | 8:30am NZST)
18th March vs Bayer Leverkusen (KO 1:30am AEST | 3:30am NZST)
18th May @ Union Berlin (KO 11:30pm AEST | 19th May 1:30am NZST)
Teacher’s comment: Despite a slow start to the Bundesliga season, Freiburg has picked it up, winning three of its last five games. Freiburg’s Achilles’ heel is the lack of a genuine goalscoring threat. Lucas Höler’s five goals will not be enough for Freiburg to secure European competition. Whether it can find another marksman in the winter window will determine how Freiburg ends this season.
Heidenheim
There was much excitement when Heidenheim dramatically gained promotion to the Bundesliga last season. On the final matchday of the 2022/23 2. Bundesliga season, a win would be enough for Heidenheim to gain promotion. It didn’t make it easy however, going 2-0 down to already-relegated Jahn Regensburg. An incredible comeback ensued, with two stoppage time goals helping to secure a 3-2 win and the second division championship.
That resilience has been on show as Heidenheim has defied expectations to sit at the edge of the top half of the table midway through its first season in the Bundesliga. The longest-active serving manager in German football, Frank Schmidt, has a committed team of fighters at his disposal as Heidenheim continues to lay waste to the glittery reputations of higher-profile clubs around it.
This was evident in their 2-2 draw against Borussia Dortmund at the Signal Iduna Park earlier this season. Trailing 2-0 after 60 minutes, ‘Der Dino’ pulled off an incredible comeback with goals from Eren Dinkçi and Tim Kleindienst to salvage a draw. In its last fixture before the winter break, Heidenheim came from behind twice to take all three points against Freiburg.
Grade: A
Key Fixtures
3rd February vs Borussia Dortmund (KO 6:30 AEST | 8:30 NZST)
25th February @ Union Berlin (KO 1:30am AEST | 3:30am NZST)
30th March - 1st April @ Stuttgart (KO TBC)
5th - 8th April vs Bayern Munich (KO TBC)
18th May vs Köln (KO 11:30pm AEST | 19th May 1:30am NZST)
Teacher’s comment: The rise to the Bundesliga has been mightily impressive from Heidenheim, and to enter the winter break in ninth is a massive achievement. On the end of a three-game winning streak, Heidenheim is now 10 points clear of Mainz, which occupies the relegation play-off spot. With the goal still being to avoid relegation, 14 points could be enough for Heidenheim to score a second season in the Bundesliga.
