Bundesliga preview: Bayern Munich, Bayer Leverkusen get early, top-of-the-table clash

Bayern Munich host Bayer Leverkusen in an early top-of-the-table clash in the Bundesliga this weekend.

The two Champions League participants are bidding to go into the two-week break for internationals on a high, and at the top of the table. With two wins out of two, both have underlined their title ambitions, but something has to give this Saturday evening when they meet at the Allianz Arena.

“It’s going to be a difficult game – Leverkusen are very aggressive and they press you right from the first minute, so we’re going to have to be careful,” said Bayern midfielder Arturo Vidal, who previously played for Leverkusen, at a media round table in Munich.

“It’s going to be a special game for me because I’ve never played against my former club.

“I’m very grateful to Leverkusen, but now I play for Bayern and I want to get the best I can for them.”

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Borussia Dortmund, who have also started the season with two wins and impressed with a 7-2 second-leg victory over Odd in the Europa League on Thursday, will be looking to keep ahead at least on goal difference when they host unbeaten Hertha Berlin on Sunday.

Behind them, Cologne will be keen to maintain their unbeaten start to the season when they host Hamburg, who picked up their first win against Stuttgart last weekend, while newcomers Darmstadt also have an unbeaten record to preserve when they host Hoffenheim, although they have yet to win on their return to the top flight after a 33-year absence.

Ingolstadt have already celebrated their first win in the Bundesliga, although they also tasted their first defeat a week ago. They travel to local rivals Augsburg for a new Bavarian derby on the Bundesliga calendar this Saturday.

Elsewhere, Stuttgart hope to pick up their first points of the season when they host Eintracht Frankfurt, who are coached by their former boss Armin Veh, while Mainz and Hannover also meet this Saturday.

Sunday’s final game is between Werder Bremen and Borussia Monchengladbach, who on Thursday were placed in a particularly difficult Champions League group with Manchester City, Juventus and Sevilla but will be desperate to get off the mark in the Bundesliga before thinking ahead to those games.