Weekend Warm-up: All eyes are on Bayer Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz ahead of Bayern Munich tilt; Bundesliga predictions; Throwing it back to Led Zeppelin; Thoughts on True Detective and Curb Your Enthusiasm; plus MORE! (2024)

There is no doubt that Bayer Leverkusen star Florian Wirtz is among the brightest, young stars in all of the world.

Bayern Munich wants him...Liverpool FC, Manchester City, FC Barcelona, and Real Madrid have all — allegedly — taken a close look at him. Simply put, the kid is good.

While the 20-year-old has been unable to establish himself fully with the German national team, Wirtz has been an absolutely vital figure for Bayer Leverkusen during its unbeaten run this season.

Now, Wirtz faces the big, red juggernaut from Bavaria in a match that will go a long way in determining the league champion — and all eyes will be on him. Granted, Bayer Leverkusen has a plethora of talented players on its roster, but make no mistake, Wirtz will be the man under the microscope.

With eight goals and 15 assists in 23 games across all competitions this season, Wirtz has been productive and impactful. Given everything that has led up to this match, Wirtz should be ready for the challenge.

This is the kind of match where young players can start building a legacy and there is nothing to suggest that Wirtz will wilt under the spotlight.

Can Bayern Munich ruin a potential career-changing match for Wirtz that has potential to be his coming-out party to the greater football world?

Bavarian Podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Podcast: Season 3, Episode 31

IT’S THE FINAL COUNTDOWN!

Okay, now that you have Europe cued up, you are officially ready for the massive Bundesliga tilt between Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen.

If that is not enough, let’s do a little more talking about the match, plus a lot more on this week’s edition of the Bavarian Podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Podcast. Here is what we have on tap for this episode:

• There is an excitement and tension building up for Bayern Munich vs. Bayer Leverkusen.
• Frans Krätzig set off for FK Austrian Wien.
• The rumors linking Bayern Munich to FC Barcelona’s Ronald Araújo could actually be legitimate, while Leroy Sané probably won’t be going to Liverpool.
• Why the emergence of Aleksandar Pavlović matters.
• Sky ran a fan poll to pick Germany’s starting XI...do you agree?

Song of the Week: “Immigrant Song” by Led Zeppelin

I woke up and chose Led Zeppelin...that’s always a good way to go. I have to admit, though, I’ve this one in my head since watching Thor: Ragnarok, so hell with it...let’s do some Zeppelin (again):

Entertainment Rundown

True Detective: Night Country — Episode 4

There was so much that happened in this episode. There was progress this week...let’s dive in:

• The overarching theme of people being miserable is still there for sure — the subject matter did not give any indication that it will change any time soon.
• We saw a suicide (RIP Julia), a likely catfish (poor Hank waiting for his Russian bride-to-be at the airport), and a lot of conflict — between just about everyone. However, there was a lot of good story building and an excellent use of the Alaskan setting as well.
• Man...I feel bad for Pete in this story. The poor kid is working his ass off, trying to please everyone, and trying to keep a young family together. That pull between work and family is one that so many have to deal with. Some people are painting him as a “bad guy” in this story, but I’m not sure what else he can give in his spot.
• The ice caves discovery should play a key role in the story as we go along and provides a new eerie element to this. We all remember Carcosa from season one.
• The character of Rose certainly is one of the more intriguing people on the show. Getting to hear her backstory was extremely interesting — and keeps the show tiptoeing on the edge of having a mystical element.
• As the hunt for Clark continues, there was a fortunate break with a fisherman seeing him, but, alas, no one can track this guy down.
• Oliver Tagaq’s rapid disappearance and the discovery of Otis Heiss both felt like big moments in working toward major part of this story.
• Overall, this was a very solid episode and it set the stage for a lot more to happen. After episode three was mildly disappointing, episode four ramped things back up.

Rating: 4.00/5.00

Curb Your Enthusiasm — Episode 1

The first episode of the final season of Curb...so let’s get to it:

• Let me started by saying I am a massive fan of Curb, but this episode just did not fully hit the mark. Sure, there was the typical Larry interactions with random people that typically create comedic gold, but — while it was still funny at times — this episode did not have me laughing out loud repeatedly like I do for many episodes of Curb.
• The interactions between Larry, Leon, Jeff, and Susie are still the foundation of the show and make it as good as it has been. I just felt like Larry’s byplay with “Brook/Brookie” and Michael Fouchay was not as strong as some of the other foils we have seen Larry battle over the years. Similarly, the character Maria Sofia continues to be thoroughly annoying and I think diverted too much attention away from better characters.
• The reappearance of Auntie Rae was unexpected and fun.
• What the show continues to do masterfully, is show Larry waging war against almost everyone he encounters in his life. That element of the show still was fun and worked...just some of the subject matter and characters were not up to the task of butting heads with Larry.
• Overall, I won’t write off the season by any means — I am still 100% in on it. I had a couple of moments where I really laughed, but the level of expectations that I have for Curb are so high, I might have always been set up to be letdown for this particular episode.

Rating: 3.00/5.00

Bavarian Podcast Works: Preview Show — Bayer Leverkusen vs. Bayern Munich

Bayern Munich vs. Bayer Leverkusen...it is finally that time.

If you were looking for a bigger match in the Bundesliga this season, you will not find it. The first place and second place teams are set to do battle in a match that will have a massive effect on the league standings.

Why wait any long to get talking on this one? Let’s take a look at what we have on tap for this Preview Show:

• A look at where each team is in the table.
• The multitude of subplots between these two teams.
• Some thoughts on Bayern Munich’s injury and absence situation, plus why this week will present Thomas Tuchel with some very, very difficult decisions for his starting XI.
• An attempt to figure out Tuchel’s lineup for the game — and why common sense probably will not prevail.
• A prediction on the match.

Predictions

What else is there to say?

This is a battle of two teams that both feel like they have a strong claim to the Bundesliga crown. Xabi Alonso is the hottest, young coach in the game, while Thomas Tuchel seems to be out to prove that his Champions League win with Chelsea FC was not just a one-off fluke.

It should be a great tactical battle between the coaches (Tuchel had better be on top of his game) and a fantastic (and physical) showdown better the players on the pitch.

Let’s just hope the game lives up to the hype.

Prediction: Bayer Leverkusen 2-3 Bayern Munich

Bayern Munich received an advantageous draw in getting Lazio in this round. The Italian side simply cannot match the firepower of the Bavarians, but will likely be scrappy enough to prevent any type of blowout.

It will not be a cakewalk, but Bayern Munich will not have to strain too much to walk out of Stadio Olimpico with a victory and a strong lead in the tie.

Champions League Prediction: Lazio 0-2 Bayern Munich* (early pick — nothing changed enough over the past week to change the pick)

Other Bundesliga predictions include:

• Borussia Dortmund 2-1 SC Freiburg
• FC Augsburg 1-3 RB Leipzig
• Borussia Mönchengladbach 1-0 SV Darmstadt 98
• Eintracht Frankfurt 2-0 VfL Bochum
• Union Berlin 1-1 VfL Wolfsburg
• Werder Bremen 1-2 Heidenheim
• VfB Stuttgart 3-0 Mainz 05
• Hoffenheim 2-1 FC Köln

Prediction Records

• Bundesliga Last Active Week: 4-6 (includes correct 1-1 draw prediction from Union Berlin vs. Mainz in Matchday 18 that was previously postponed. Also, only an idiot would pick so many road teams last week...)
• Bundesliga Total: 89-91
• DFB-Pokal Total: 1-1
• Champions League Total: 5-1
• DFL-Supercup: 0-1
• Total: 95-94