The Bundesliga turned into one of the best races on the continent, and surprisingly, Bayern Munich was nowhere to be found. Indeed, the Bavarians slipped all of the way down to fourth place, missing next season’s Champions League entirely, and they dismissed coach Felix Magath along the way. For a while, it looked as if coach Ottmar Hitzfeld, back in the saddle after leading Bayern Munich to its last European glory (a Champs League crown in 2001), was pulling out some more rabbits from his hat when Real Madrid was eliminated in a Champs League KO round battle shortly after his appointment, but a subsequent quarterfinal loss to AC Milan ended the dreams. Bayern Munich never adequately replaced departed midfielder Michael Ballack, and now must fill in some more in the fall after Owen Hargreaves recently bolted for Man United.

Into the Bundesliga breach, however, stepped Stuttgart, which rallied impressively down the stretch under coach Armin Vey to nip Schalke and Werder Bremen in an exciting photo finish. Bremen’s Miroslav Klose continued as one of Europe’s most-feared strikers, and will apparently stay put as Bremen looks to capture domestic glory and cause problems in the Champions League, with Klose again the catalyst, next fall.