Rensing claws the ball off the line. Replays showed it should have been given a goal. Photo: picture alliance/M.i.s. Sportspressfoto

Die-hard football fans dread the summer break. It’s a strange two and a half month period with one barren weekend following the next. Obsessive followers check the transfer rumors several times a day and fans throughout the world tinker with their fantasy teams non-stop. But really it’s all just a way of making the time go by more quickly. Being prepared for that moment: The new season, full of hopes and dreams.

Wolfsburg’s fans’ are of the variety that can be more hopeful and allow themselves to dream more than most. A repeat of their surprise Bundesliga championship does not seem too far-fetched. Their team successfully resisted AC Milan’s attempts to prise away their striker Edin Dzeko and even strengthened their side in a few key areas. Most notably, highly-rated Nigerian striker Obememi Martins from Newcastle United was added to their squad. They may have lost their charismatic coach Felix Magath, but in came Armin Veh, himself no stranger to landing surprise championships as he managed that unexpected feat with VfB Stuttgart in 2007.

It was against his former championship-winning side that Veh’s team kicked off the season and their defense of the title. The Friday night game developed into an entertaining affair, as both sides showed remarkable form and fitness, attacking quickly.

Stuttgart’s new Russian international striker Pogrebnyak, signed from Zenit St. Petersburg, quickly showed that he has what it takes to become a top player in the Bundesliga, as he set about causing the Wolfsburg defense problems with his movement and interlinking play.

Wolfsburg’s set-up was similar to the previous season. Their deadly trio, Misimovic-Grafite-Dzeko made the difference in this high-quality game. First Bosnian-Herzegowina international Misimovic put his side ahead in the 71st minute with a beautifully curled left-foot shot from just outside the box. And then last year’s Golden Boot winner Grafite tied up the match by skipping past Tasci and then coolly beating Stuttgart keeper Jens Lehmann.

Title favorites Bayern Munich drop points

It will come as no surprise to football followers that Bayern Munich were declared title favorites by most Bundesliga coaches. Following a protracted flirt with Real Madrid, Bayern had managed to hang on to French international Franck Ribery. They also spent big money (€ 30 million) on strengthening their attack with German international Mario Gomez and generally added depth to their squad with a number of other signings. Significantly they had brought in Dutch coach Louis van Gaal to whip them into shape.

Unfortunately for Bayern however, it was shape that they were lacking as they were run ragged in the opening exchanges of their match away against TSG Hoffenheim. Following a freekick whipped in with plenty of speed and spin by Salihovic, new defensive signing Simunic headed the ball onto the inside of the post, only for Bayern keeper Rensing to claw it out. Replays showed what the spectators suspected: the ball was clearly behind the line. The call for goal-line cameras or chips in the ball was rife in the press soon after. Even the referee admitted his mistake and argued for the future use of a goal camera. Hoffenheim coach Rangnick wasn’t too optimistic about change any time soon: “Those who decide these matters at Fifa have an average age of 82.5 years,” he said.

Hoffenheim continued to dominate the match, but were unable to make it count. Bayern, on the other hand, took the lead with their first good attack of the game. Altintop switched flanks by hitting a long-rage pass into the path of Pranjic, he crossed immediately and found new Croatian international signing Ivica Olic (25. min.).

The home side were visibly shocked at being a goal down. Suddenly Bayern Munich took control and TSG Hoffenheim struggled to string together their passes. The game suffered a noticeable drop in quality, before Hoffenheim scored out of the blue.

In the 41st minute Weis floated in a ball to Ibisevic who knocked the ball down to Obasi. The Nigerian hit the ball first time and scored from just inside the box.

In the second half Bayern were initially the better side and wasted a number of good chances. First Baumjohann went one-on-one with keeper Hildebrand but was forced too far around the keeper to finish; and in a similar situation Mario Gomez rounded the former Stuttgart keeper, but he took couldn’t beat the tight angle and hit the outside of the post. The match finished a tie.

Other talking points

In other matches worth noting, Frankfurt sprung a surprise victory on Werder Bremen. Frankfurt took the lead twice through Greek striker Amanatidis, but were pulled back level each time. In the second half Czech international Martin Fenin scored the winner to cap off a memorable away win. In a nod to the city’s great philosophy tradition, the local Frankfurter Rundschau paper described the match under their new coach Michael Skibbe as “The new Frankfurt school”. Anyone who saw their dour performances under Friedhelm Funkel last season will agree that describing their game as a new school of thought was perhaps not far off the mark.

Felix Magath was away in Nürnberg with his new club Schalke 04. Thanks to a couple of Kuranyi goals Schalke took a 2-0 lead, but conceded late and stumbled over the finish line. “That has nothing to do with Bundesliga, professional football and team sport!” Magath said angrily.

In Sunday’s match Borussia Mönchengladbach threw away a 0-3 away lead in Bochum and were lucky to escape with a point. Azaouagh scored two goals inside 48 seconds to get Bochum back in the game, before they equalized in the 63rd minute and then began an assault on Gladbach’s goal. The 10 remaining Borussia players managed to hold out for a draw though.

Match day 1 results

Wolfsburg – Stuttgart  2:0 (0:0)
Hertha – Hannover  1:0 (0:0)
Werder – Frankfurt  2:3 (2:2)
Nürnberg – Schalke 04  1:2 (0:1)
Mainz – Leverkusen  2:2 (1:2)
BVB – 1. FC Köln  1:0 (0:0)
Hoffenheim – Bayern  1:1 (1:1)
Bochum – M’gladbach  3:3 (0:3)
Freiburg – HSV  1:1 (0:1)