Believe it or not, it has been three months since Bayern Munich were crowned Bundesliga champions for the ninth successive season. It has been 10 weeks since FC Koln finalised the 2021-22 Bundesliga table by winning the relegation playoff. In the time since, there has been the Euros, the Copa America, the Gold Cup and the Olympics.
It simultaneously feels like ages ago and just yesterday that the club game closed the book on the 2020-21 season. On Friday, a new campaign begins, when Bayern visit Borussia Monchengladbach in the season opener (2:30 p.