The cup competition in Germany gets back underway on midweek. The second round of DFB Pokal has some enticing fixtures rounded up for us. On Wednesday, defending champions FC Bayern Munich will host FC Augsburg at the Allianz Arena.
After the departure of Markus Weinzierl to Schalke in the summer, many thought Augsburg will be in a serious trouble this season. However, the appointment of former Darmstadt boss Dirk Schuster is going well for Die Fuggerstädter. The Bavarian outfit currently lie twelfth in the league with eight points from eight games.
The team, however, has been terrible in front of goal this season with just seven goals scored. Their best goalscorer this campaign has been the left back Konstantinos Stafylidis with two goals. The permanent signing of Icelandic forward Alfred Finnbogason was smart but the 27-year-old has so far failed to show up his scoring boots like last season, scoring just one goal in all competitions thus far.
For Champions Bayern, they will look to continue their recent run of form after they dismantled Borussia Monchengladbach in the weekend thanks to goals from Douglas Costa and Arturo Vidal in the first half. They sit firmly at the top of the Bundesliga table with 20 points, two ahead of second-placed Hertha Berlin.
The goal drought of Thomas Muller and Robert Lewandowski in the Bundesliga remains to be a worry for manager Carlo Ancelotti. Muller is yet to score a goal in the Bundesliga while Lewandowski too has failed to score a goal recently. However, the likes of Franck Ribery, Thiago Alcantara have stepped up to the task whilst the slump of form by the strikers.
In the last round, FC Augsburg cleaned away fifth division FV Ravensburg 2:0. The first lead from Ja-Cheol Koo was extended by Raul Bobadilla’s strike in the second half. While, Bayern swept Carl-Zeiss Jena, famously known for beating HSV last season. A hat-trick from Robert Lewandowski and goals from Arturo Vidal and Mats Hummels were enough to give the defending champions a 5:0 win.
Team News
Carlo Ancelotti will have the privilege to choose from a full fit squad against Augsburg. Franck Ribery however, remains the only absentee as he is out for few weeks due to a muscular problem.
The injury dilemma of Augsburg remains intact, as Dirk Schuster will miss the services of five players against Bayern. Center backs Marvin Friedrich(Abductor muscle and Jeffery Gouweleeuw(collapsed lung) are set to miss the game along with key winger Caiuby(knee OP) and new signing Takashi Usami(Ankle) while striker Raul Bobadilla is also out due to a shoulder injury.
Predicted Lineups
FC Augsburg: (4-2-3-1 formation) Marvin Hitz; Paul Varhaegh, Christoph Janker, Martin Hinteregger, Konstantinos Stafylidis; Daniel Baier, Gojko Kacar; Ja-Cheol Koo, Halil Altintop, Jonathan Schmid; Alfred Finnbogasson.
FC Bayern: (4-3-3 formation) Manuel Neuer; Rafinha, Javi Martinez, Mats Hummels, Juan Bernat; Arturo Vidal, Thiago Alcantara, Joshua Kimmich; Thomas Muller; Robert Lewandowski, Kingsley Coman.
