Who can win the Bundesliga?

With this seasons Bundesliga title race the tightest it has looked in years, we take a look at who could potentially lift the trophy come May....

Bayern Munich

As ever, the pre-season favourites for the title were Bayern Munich, and having secured what looked like good replacements for Robben and Ribery (in Perisic and Coutinho), the Champions looked happy to collect their 9th consecutive title. So what went wrong, and why aren't they sitting in 1st place? Nico Kovac lost his job after failing to gain any sort of lead at the top of the table, allowing the rise of Borussia Mönchengladbach, and an embarrassing 5-1 loss to Frankfurt proved the final straw, and he lost his job after 18 months in charge, having won the cup double the season before. In his place Hans-Dieter Flick has come in as 'interim' manager and has brought a level of stability and consistency back to Bayern, and they are now a point off the leaders and have every chance of going on to win the title.

So why could Bayern win the title?

Being only a point off of the leaders means it is very much 'all to play for'. It does help that they have both the league joint top scorer (Robert Lewandowski - 20 goals) and the top assister (Thomas Muller - 12 assists) in their ranks, on top of that, Bayern have only failed to win the league twice in 10 years - they have experience. They have players who have seen and won it all together - World Cups, Champions Leagues and domestic success, if this title race comes down to experience (which I believe to be a major factor), Bayern come out trumps every time.

RB Leipzig

Despite being one of the most hated clubs in Germany, RB Leipzig have stunned the Bundesliga this season. Nagelsmann and his young squad have blitzed the league this season, almost constantly outscoring their opponents. They have fallen short against the big boys, with a 3-3 draw to Dortmund and a 1-1 draw with Bayern, but teams like Mainz have found themselves on the receiving end of an 8-0 thrashing, and now sit top of the Bundesliga with 15 games to go.

So why could Leipzig win the title?

Timo Werner. He is just an unbelievable talent. The 23 year-old is joint-top with Lewandowski on 20 goals in the Bundesliga this season. With Yousef Poulsen waiting in the wings whenever called upon, it is clear that Nagelsmann has much faith in his front line, characterised by the fact that he has chosen to loan out one of their prized young assets in Jean-Kevin Augustin to Leeds United. On top of that, he passed up on the opportunity to sign Erling Haaland, despite having a partnership with RB Salzburg. Regardless of the wealth of highly prized defenders in their ranks (Upamenco, Klostermann and Konate having all been linked with moves to the Premier League this January), Leipzig haven't shown the defensive resilience required of potential champions this season, with goalkeeper Péter Gulácsi only keeping 4 clean sheets in 18 games, it is clear that Leipzig rely on their forwards to win them games by out-scoring opponents. Should Werner carry on in this purple patch, and should players like Nkunku continue to provide for him, Leipzig have every chance of winning the title for the first time.

Borussia Dortmund

The arrival of Erling Haaland has given Dortmund fans much hope for their title chances this season, and it should. It would seem that all season they have lacked that lethal edge up front. While Sancho and Reus will run the show from the wings, as mentioned in a previous article, Paco Alcacer seemed to lack the ruthlessness that his teammates required of him in front of goal. 3 Bundesliga goals already to his name show that Haaland means business here. They currently sit in 4th, 4 points off of leaders Leipzig.

So why could Dortmund win the title?

With Haaland's addition to the squad, Dortmund now have a classy front line with 3 incredibly exciting young players in Thorgan Hazard, Erling Haaland and Jadon Sancho, as well as 1 vastly experienced world-class player in Marco Reus, which can easily compete with any of their rivals. On top of this, they have a solid foundation, with 6 time Bundesliga winner Mats Hummels and rising star Akanji at the back. They have shipped goals at times this season, with Lucien Favre aiming to cover up the cracks in this latter stage of the season, and should they fix that, Dortmund could challenge. This squad is deep and has a nice balance of youth, experience and world class players, and that, for me, is why they are my favourites, and who I tip to win the title this season.

Borussia Mönchengladbach

'Gladbach have stunned Germany this season, having led the rest comfortably for much of the season, until now. Thuram and Embolo have led the line and brought 6 goals each to their league campaign this season, and seemed real contenders.

So why could Mönchengladbach win the title?

For me, it is a little out of their reach. They have already seemed to have buckled under the pressure of actually having contenders; they were comfortable at the top when there was no real opposition, but now Bayern have awoken and Leipzig and Dortmund are on the rise it would seem the lack of real, world-class talent and squad depth is harming their chances. Still, they have been good value for money this season and deserve a spot in the top 4/5 places, which was probably seen as over-achieving at the start of the season.

Prediction

Come May, I expect the table to look a little like this...

1. Dortmund

2. Bayern

3. Leipzig

4. 'Gladbach

For the sake of variety I really hope Dortmund win the title this year, and I fully believe that they can. Bayern are too good and too stubborn to settle for 3rd, although Leipzig will give them a really good run in and may even pip them, and 'Gladbach will face opposition from Bayer Leverkusen for 4th, but should hold on to it. It could come down to which of the 3 classy strikers scores the most goals between now and the end of the season, and Haaland, Lewandowski and Werner, I am sure, would relish this competition (although Thuram does deserve an honourable mention, as his game is so much more than goals, and 'Gladbach have reaped the rewards from him).

As of right now, the title is in the balance, and with just 15 games left, and just 4 points separating 1st from 4th, it is all to play for.