FC Augsburg : A rising superpower in Germany
FC Augsburg
A new rising superpower in the Bundesliga? FC Augsburg have raised many eyebrows with a chain of good performances, even after being heavily overshadowed by their illustrious Bavarian neighbours. Despite being a team that has spent most of its footballing life in the lower leagues, this merger between two of Augsburg’s best teams has surely won many more fans around the globe. The club finally gained Bundesliga promotion in 2011 and ever since, their fans and players have been had an enormous thirst to gain recognition as one of Germany’s better clubs.
With just 9 games remaining, 8th place Augsburg are aiming for a spot in the Europa league. This side has produced many impressive performances against other well-known clubs, as they have defeated Hamburger SV, Borussia M’gladbach and Stuttgart and drew against the yellow and black fury of Germany, Dortmund. Their wonderful form is fueled by their electric fans and a very adamant coach who goes by the name of Markus Weinzierl. Their top scorers are Andre Hahn, whose performances have earned him a spot in the national side, Halil Altintop and Tobias Werner.
Many other players who have made a huge difference to the club’s play are quite unheard of. Some of their other notable players this season have been Dutchman Paul Verhaegh and Germans Daniel Baier and Kevin Vogt.
The team had previously enjoyed a successful season in 2009-10 under Jos Luhukay, former Monchengladbach and current Hertha Berlin manager, as they reached the semi-finals of the DFB-pokal. which is the German cup. The fact that they finished 3rd in Bundesliga.2, allowed them to play Nuremberg for Bundesliga promotion, but they encountered a bitter loss. However, they came back in style, finishing 2nd the next season and thereby getting promoted to the first division for the first time.
They were deemed worthy of competing against the renowned German clubs, but Luhukay resigned, stating his doubts about the club’s prospects as his cause.
The club then appointed young dynamo Markus Weinzierl as their new head coach. The club narrowly avoided relegation, but is now moving up with a bang, thirsty to prove their worth to the world. This season, things have been much more fruitful for the Bavarians. Their strong counter-attacking style of play has received many plaudits for its effectiveness. However, their existence grows day by day and the best thing to do right now, as stated by their very own manager, is ” to stay realistic”. Wise words from the young manager, considering the fact that things can slip away very easily at this point of time.
Many of their players have started to become internationally recognized, obviously starting up a rumor mill regarding their stay at Augsburg. But they have recently snapped up a couple of players like Raul Bobadilla, Halil Altintop and young talents Arkadiusz Milik and Dominik Kohr from Bayer Leverkusen on loan deals. If their objective of qualifying for the Europa League is met, there is a chance that new, talented players will join the Bavarian side for the Europa experience and the “Bundesliga underdog approach”. They can have a big rise in German football just like Borussia Dortmund, Eintracht Frankfurt, FSV Mainz and Borussia Monchengladbach.
If the last few games are played with full passion and skill from players, there is absolutely no doubt that they can make a much larger mark on the Bundesliga, and maybe even qualify for the UEFA Champions League.
Regardless of whether they let slip their chances in the Bundesliga, they have left a mark on Germany, aching to leave their mark on the World. Regardless of whether their players are famous or not, they are a great club to follow and a club which has earned worldwide respect for their rise from the shadows and into the mellow brightness of world football. They can always walk out of defeats with their heads held high and appropriately savor their wins, making them a really good club with a bright footballing future ahead.