Guardiola’s Bayern clear favourites for Bundesliga

Pep Guardiola’s official arrival at the Allianz Arena appears to have only heightened the level of expectation surrounding Bayern Munich for the coming season.

The club known as FC Hollywood to their Bundesliga rivals have recruited a manager in the movie star mould, with the former Barcelona boss expected to deliver another season of blockbuster proportions.

Bayern begin the campaign as clear favourites to lift the title again and a quick look at last season’s record-breaking statistics provide plenty of ammunition as to why they should be backed, with Ladbrokes offering 1/6 on another league championship.

Under Jupp Heynckes, the Munich giants won 29 of their 34 league games, losing just once during the entire season. In all, they amassed a record 91 points, scoring 98 goals and are currently 25 games unbeaten in the Bundesliga.

Meanwhile the imminent arrival of Mario Gotze from Borussia Dortmund for 35 million euros has served to not only strengthen Bayern’s squad but also weaken that of their closest rival.

FC Hollywood will begin their title defence without the injured Gotze though and face a potentially tricky home encounter with old rivals Borussia Monchengladbach on the opening day.

Last time they met at Borussia Park, Die Fohlen let a 3-1 lead slip against the Bavarians to lose 4-3, while the corresponding fixture at the Allianz Arena ended in a 1-1 draw.

Any slip-ups early on in the season could provide a boost to the chasing pack, with Borussia Dortmund available as distant second favourites to lift a third title in four years at 11/2.

Jurgen Klopp has recruited defensive reinforcements in the form of Werder Bremen defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos and with rumours of more big-name arrivals continuing to bubble away, these odds could be worth a look.

One club already spending big is Bayer Leverkusen with the perennial nearly men of German football recruiting Italian Under-21 defender Giulio Donati from Inter Milan along with Hamburg’s highly-rated forward Heung-Min Son.

Available at 33/1 to claim a first-ever Bundesliga title and the only team to beat Bayern last term, Leverkusen definitely fall under the category of dark horses.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.