12 September 2023 was the day when FC Augsburg underwent an overhaul as a club, as Stefan Reuter’s immediate resignation as sporting director at the Bundesliga football club was announced. After more than 10 years at the helm, the 1990 World Cup winner vacated the sporting leadership. (Little fun fact: TSG Managing Director Alexander Rosen has since become the league’s longest-serving management executive). For FCA, Reuter’s resignation marked only the start of a complete reorganisation.
Following Matchday 7 – a 2-1 home defeat to promoted SV Darmstadt 98 – coach Enrico Maaßen also packed his bags. The former Dortmund reserve coach had just about led Augsburg to 15th position in the division in his debut season and ensured their survival in the process, but a run of only one victory in seven matches proved to be the end of the line for him. The choice of successor was certainly surprising: Jess Thorup became the new man in the dugout at the Bavarian Swabians. And the 54-year-old Dane is not only a new face in the Bundesliga, but has also brought sporting success back to the tradition-steeped city. In the three matches under the leadership of Thorup, who himself laced his boots for KFC Uerdingen in the 2. Bundesliga back in the 1990s, Augsburg have remained unbeaten and picked up a whopping seven points. What is particularly noteworthy is the fact that the team produced a complete comeback both in Heidenheim (5-2 win from 2-0 down) and against VfL Wolfsburg (3-2 win from 2-1 down); they were also 1-0 down at 1. FC Köln before coming back to draw.
The squad has clearly built up a high degree of resilience, even if Thorup has proven to be rather unenthusiastic in the face of the best start by an FCA coach in the club’s history: “It’s been an okay start. To be honest, I’m not satisfied,” he said on Thursday. The reason for this is the obvious defensive shortcomings, with the team conceding at least one goal in every Bundesliga match. “We have to be more alert, be closer together and focus more on our defensive work,” said the coach. Felix Uduokhai, who was recently suspended, could feature in the match against TSG.
In the attacking department, Augsburg can count on the duo of Ermedin Demirovic and Philipp Tietz, who have scored eight of the 19 goals in total between them. The 1.90m-tall Tietz seems to be a man unleashed following Thorup’s appointment – the previously unsuccessful forward has scored in each of the last three games. FC Augsburg, who occupy 10th place in the table with 12 points, have already opened up a considerable gap to the relegation berths thanks to their seven points under Thorup and are likely to carry a heightened sense of self-belief into the game at the WWK-Arena. TSG have therefore been warned, but can take heart from their recent away record: Hoffenheim’s serial offenders have recently picked up five consecutive wins on the road. Will that run continue?