The Bundesliga returns for the 2017/18 season after a long summer with little international involvement. The biggest tie of the first match week sees Bayer Leverkusen take the trip the home of the champions, Bayern Munich. The hosts won the title by 15 points while Leverkusen had a very poor season by their standards as they finished 12^th just four points adrift of the relegation play-off.

STATS

• Bayern Munich have already got their season underway nicely as they have picked up the first piece of silverware, the German Super Cup while they have advanced to the next round of the DFB Cup after a 5-0 win over Chemnitzer FC. They finished last season in good form as they won four of their last five games in the league to comfortably take the league title, they’ll be hoping to make it five Bundesliga wins on the bounce in this one.
• Bayer Leverkusen have also got a win under their belts going into the league season as they beat Karlsruher 3-0 in the first round of the DFB Cup. They went out with a bang at the end of last season with a huge 6-2 over Hertha Berlin but this was part of a run five games with just one win, which put them in and around the danger zone.
• The champions’ main danger man is undoubtedly Robert Lewandowski, whose goal tally of last season was only bettered by Borussia Dortmund frontman, Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang. He will be desperate to get off the mark against Leverkusen.
• Kevin Volland will be Leverkusen’s main threat in front of goal against Bayern with his pace, trickery and ability to finish all kinds of chances. The hosts will have to watch out for counter-attacking football.

HEAD TO HEAD

The fixtures between the two sides have been dominated by Bayern Munich in recent years as Bayer Leverkusen have only managed to pick up one win at the last 10 attempts. Bayern have won five of the meetings during that period. In the last six games between the two, Leverkusen have only scored one goal.

BAYERN MUNICH NEWS

While it should be plain sailing for Bayern Munich in the season opener, they have several of their first-team players unavailable for the clash. Jerome Boateng, Thiago and James Rodriguez will all miss the game through injury but the Bavarians should have more than enough quality to fill the gaps left by the three players.

Latest matches: Bayern Munich

12.08.2017	DFB	Chemnitzer FC	Bayern Munich	0:5	W
05.08.2017	Supe	Borussia Dortmund	Bayern Munich	6:7	W
02.08.2017	Audi	SSC Napoli	Bayern Munich	2:0	L
01.08.2017	Audi	Bayern Munich	Liverpool FC	0:3	L
27.07.2017	Inte	Bayern Munich	Inter Milan	0:2	L

BAYER LEVERKUSEN NEWS

Bayer Leverkusen are up against it in this game and they have a few injuries to make their task even harder. Tin Jedvaj, Stefan KIeßling and Kai Havertz are all injured and won’t make the matchday squad. The absence of Kießling will hurt the visitors most due to his experience.

Latest matches: Bayer Leverkusen

11.08.2017	DFB	Karlsruher SC	Bayer Leverkusen	0:3	W
05.08.2017	Club	Bayer Leverkusen	Celta de Vigo	3:3	D
30.07.2017	Club	Bayer Leverkusen	Lazio Roma	1:3	L
27.07.2017	Club	Bayer Leverkusen	Antalyaspor	1:1	D
23.07.2017	Club	SV Sandhausen	Bayer Leverkusen	3:2	L

SUMMARY

As one of the best teams in Europe, it is very rare that Bayern Munich would be going into a game as the underdogs and this game is no different as they are solid favourites and should start the season with a comfortable win. While Leverkusen won’t be easy to break down, as soon as the hosts score one goal, it could be a case of the proverbial floodgates opening. Bayern are expected to pick up all three points with style on the first day of the season and Leverkusen shouldn’t pose too much of a threat.