Champions Bayern Munich in pole position for Bundesliga start despite short pre-season

BERLIN -Champions Bayern Munich kick off the new Bundesliga season against visitors RB Leipzig on Friday, knowing they are the team to beat once more even though they had a shortened pre-season following the Club World Cup in the United States. 

Having won the league title 12 times in the last 13 years, the Bavarians have spent more than any other club in the close season to bring in Luis Diaz from Liverpool for a reported 70 million euros ($81.60 million) - their third highest transfer ever - as well as Germany internationals Jonathan Tah and Tom Bischof to boost the quality of their squad.

However, they also had a shortened break and pre-season preparation, along with fellow Club World Cup competitors Borussia Dortmund, due to the tournament in the United States stretching well into July.

Bayern still earned their first trophy of the season last week, beating German Cup winners VfB Stuttgart 2-1 in the German Supercup on Saturday, despite some players cramping.

"The cramping, with a short pre-season it is normal, especially in a final," Bayern coach Vincent Kompany told a press conference on Thursday. "But we are mentally here. The hunger is here. I don't want to talk about any negative impact of the Club World Cup. We want to take another step to get better. The motivation is not less than last year."

"The bar has to be higher," Kompany said. "As regards the favourites tag, yes, we are the champions so that's ok, but that won't win us the game tomorrow. For me what is important is to have a hunger of a team that has not won anything and wants to win something for the first time."

Bayer Leverkusen are undergoing a full overhaul following the departure of coach Xabi Alonso, who led them to the domestic league and Cup double