Yes its a long break.
While the Christmas/New Year period is one of the busiest ‘on the Island’, Bundesliga teams take a break before they jet off to tan and train in exotic locations away from the German winter. It might seem like an interuption to the season – right now teams are playing practice games against all sorts of opponents – it also has its advantages.
Take, for example, Hamburg SV. A terrible first half to the season, relegation threatens, plenty of injuries and a complete mess of transfers (good players out, poor replacements). The break is a welcome time to adjust to the new challences, integrate new players and consider the position of the coach. Thomas Doll has kept his job (for now) and he has had close to a month to work with new players and existing staff to turn the club around. Other teams are doing likewise.
However, as in other leagues, the transfer window is open in the Bundesliga. Here are some of the recent rumours (?) and movements (#):
? Manchester United still chasing Bayern’s Hargreaves
# Bayern acquire Jan Schlaudraff from Aachen (take note of this future star)
? Klose to Juventus?? Dortmund’s Metzelder too??
# Goalkeeper Rost to Hamburg (they will need him!!)
# Marcelinho to Wolfsburg
# Peter Niemeyer joins Bremen
# Ballack to leave Chelsea and join FC Freiburg
Finally, a sad day for Sebastian Deisler’s fans as he bids farewell at the age of 27.
Was Deisler really that good? I know he was unlucky with injuries – missing World Cups – but I always thought Ballack was better.