Another enthralling Bundesliga season came to an end this past weekend. Although Bayern Munich had wrapped up their title win a few weeks ago – which has been the norm in recent history – there was quite a lot to play for on the final match day.
While Hamburg and Wolfsburg were involved in a relegation scrap, Hertha Berlin, Freiburg and Koln were vying for a place in the Europa League, a big deal for the three sides who haven't played in Europe for quite a long time.
There was no shortage of drama as position changes saw Koln qualifying for Europe and Hamburg saving themselves, yet again.
Though Bayern have established their hegemony over the League title, there were quite a few takeaways from the 2016-17 season. Here are five of them:
#5 Red Bull can give you wings, but not enough apparently
Okay, that was perhaps a bit harsh. For any promoted side, finishing second - ahead of the likes of Borussia Dortmund, Schalke and Borussia Monchengladbach – is a commendable achievement.
When Red Bull RasenBallsport Leipzig were promoted, there was quite a hullabaloo as many deemed them the enemy owing to their ownership model which violated the unique 50+1 rule. However, their approach was no-holds-barred. After all, you don't get to compete with Bayern by being the good guys.
Ralph Hassenhuttl's side played a brand of football that no one could complain about. With Ralf Rangnick as the sporting director, the geggenpressing model often reigned supreme. And the club had a smashing group of players to implement their style.
Leipzig went toe to toe with Bayern for nearly a season, even though they failed to beat the German giants in their two games. The likes of Emil Forsberg, Naby Keita and Timo Werner stood out and they will be a team to watch next season.
If they can fortify their squad, Bayern's title run could be under threat. For now, the scourge of East Germany will be delighted with a second-place finish.
#4 The Dinos refuse to become irrelevant
The ticking clock in the Northwest corner of Volksparkstadion is a sight to behold at Hamburg. The club have never been relegated since the Bundesliga's inception in 1963 and season after season, they somehow do the impossible and save themselves from the jaws of relegation.
Despite changing managers and looking like a side even Bayern's neighbours 1860 Munich could beat if given a chance, Markus Gisdol's side somehow conjured all the ability they could muster and managed to pick up five points from their last three games to push Wolfsburg to the bottom three.
Having spent 24 gameweeks in the bottom three, many felt they were once again set to play a relegation playoff against a 2. Bundesliga side, but Luka Waldschmidt's goal just a couple of minutes from time saved them the blushes.
Football has its way of entertaining and even though this Hamburg side are a far-cry from the dominant unit in the 70s and 80s of last century, the fans have taken pride from that ticking clock which goes on for another season.
#3 Schalke, Leverkusen and Wolfsburg have a lot of work to do
Prior to the start of the season, quite a few believed that it'll be a close contest between Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig for those European places. Schalke and Wolfsburg, on the other hand, were expected to compete for the Europa League places.
Often termed as perennial bottlers, Schalke got off to a horrendous start and lost their first five league games. After the arrival of Christian Heidel as the Sporting Director and Markus Weinzierl as the head coach, the club were expected to move forward following years of underachievement despite have a good academy and financial resources.
Yet, Weinzierl's side struggled to find the right balance and loitered around mid-table for most of the season. They seem to do good business in the summer but fail to get off to a good start. Plenty to ponder for Die Konigsblauen in the off season.
Like Schalke, Bayer Leverkusen too had a horrible league campaign and failed to replicate their impressive showings in Europe. Roger Schmidt's side lacked any sort of defensive understanding and despite scoring a decent number of goals, they conceded 55 which is just two fewer than relegated Ingolstadt.
Schmidt's frequent touchline altercations ultimately was his own coffin as he was sacked and replaced by Tayfun Korkut. Despite the change, things failed to take a positive turn.
The worst story of the lot is undoubtedly that of Wolfsburg. Cup winners and title challengers a couple of seasons ago, the Wolves had a good enough team with the likes of Julian Draxler, Jakub Baszczykowski, Mario Gomez and Daniel Didavi. But the team lacked cohesiveness and were beaten week in week out.
The side averaged just a goal a game and were beaten by Hamburg on the final day which means they'll now face Eintracht Braunschweig in the relegation playoffs.
There have been other clubs, Borussia Monchengladbach, for instance, who have failed miserably this season. The Bundesliga is unpredictable, but the aforementioned clubs, with their resources and squads, should all be in the top half of the table.
#2 “30% of coaching is tactics, 70% social competence”
A 28-year-old saving a club from relegation was pretty hard to fathom last season. But Julian Nagelsmann, now 29, has defied his baby-face looks and age to mastermind a Champions League place for TSG Hoffenheim, which is even harder to digest for those who believed last season's run was an aberration for a young coach.
With a mixture of youth and experience on the pitch, TSG have done something that'll make the likes of Weinzierl, Schmidt and Andre Schubert re-think their managerial futures!
So good was Hoffenhiem's run, they were the only remaining unbeaten side at one point in the season, something that even Bayern Munich couldn't manage. A wanted man at Bayern's Säbener Strasse to coach their U23 side not so long ago, Nagelsmann took the hard route and rose to prominence at Hoffenhiem.
His ideology isn't about the cerebral tactics that Pep Guardiola and Thomas Tuchel employ, but instead, man-management and ability to adapt to the opposition team's style.
Getting past the Champions League qualifiers will take some doing, but if they do make the showcase tournament, the football fraternity might just get to witness the young coach's eccentric style.
#1 Borussia Dortmund's kids impress
Despite popular opinion, Dortmund didn't exactly have a bad season. Losing players every season never makes it easy and trying to match previous season's results with kids is a different task. Bayern have and will continue to buy their competition, so some of the clubs have been left with no option.
Led by the blitzkreig form of Ousmane Dembele and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, the side scored 72 goals. The midfield and defence also had Julian Weigl and Marc Bartra, who are still young for their positions. A third-place finish along with a Cup final isn't bad considering the meagre experience they have in their squad.
Winning the league title with kids will take some doing but with someone like Tuchel at the helm, Dortmund always have a chance. With young players comes inconsistency but with a season of Champions League football behind them, the youngsters could possibly push Bayern, who will be without the likes of Philipp Lahm and Xabi Alonso, next season.
