📉 Hero to zero in 3 weeks: Bundesliga coach fights for future

Three weeks is a long time in the Bundesliga business. Often, just a few games are enough to initiate a trend reversal and give your own season a positive direction.

But sometimes, a stock that was once hot can fall deeper in just three weeks than that of Volkswagen in the late summer of 2015.

At FC Augsburg, the latter is currently the topic. Because Sandro Wagner, recently signed as a beacon of hope and media workhorse, finds himself surprisingly early in a difficult sporting situation.

In Augsburg, they could actually sit back and relax if it was just about the public perception. Because Wagner delivers: A clear edge, snappy quotes, and a press presence of previously unknown extent are the order of the day in the Fugger city.

Even more: The former cult striker makes FCA a topic of conversation beyond the city limits. And that is not a given in the sleepy Bavarian part of Swabia. In short: Wagner reliably makes headlines.

It’s just a shame that the table doesn’t count headlines, but points. And that can quickly become uncomfortable.

The surprising 3:1 opening victory against SC Freiburg deceived many Bundesliga observers and was a freak result that would probably not have occurred a second time with a tenfold repetition of the game’s course. If you take the Expected-Goals value into account, for example, Sport-Club should have actually won this match. The Augsburg team merely benefited from hair-raising mistakes by the opponent and admittedly very efficient own chance conversion.

A week later, they managed to score two goals against FC Bayern, but the 2:3 should not hide the fact that FCA sometimes looked like a training partner for the record champions.

More than the result, however, a sentence that Wagner made after the match stuck. “I don’t see that we have less quality than Bayern,” he boldly stated.

This statement may have been well-intentioned, but the next disillusionment followed at St. Pauli (1:2), before Mainz really rammed the frustration deep into the Augsburg soul: The Fugger city team lost 1:4 and had to swallow the whistles of their own fans in addition to two goals against in the majority. Apart from goalkeeper Finn Dahmen, he could have substituted all players prematurely, Wagner explained later.

The dismal interim result: Ten goals conceded after four games. Only Union conceded more. 16th place in the table. No sign of euphoria.

Positive: The Augsburg misery cannot be attributed to the lack of professional knowledge of the young coach. Ex-professional, Bayern past, esteemed TV analyst, third division promotion with Unterhaching, co-trainer of the national team – Wagner’s CV reads impressively.

But currently, it seems a bit as if he has overloaded the squad with his energy. Emotionally, tactically, and in the media, the Fugger city team rarely received more input. The fact that Wagner often behaves on the bench like an angry Rumpelstiltskin who is about to get a red card probably doesn’t help much.

The result: In a very short time, the highly esteemed coach lost many sympathies. If the sporting results are lacking, minor unsportsmanlike conduct and bold statements rarely go down well.

📸 Alexander Hassenstein – 2025 Getty Images

And when someone like Mario Basler raises his finger on ‘Sport1’ in Doppelpass, it sticks. No matter how you may professionally stand on the assessments of “Super Mario”.

His verdict: Wagner appears “arrogant” and “overbearing”. Even more: Basler publicly doubts whether Augsburg will stick with the 37-year-old throughout the season. His recommendation: first, they should bake bread rolls that are as small as the puppets of the famous Augsburg Puppet Box.

Also, coaching legend Friedhelm Funkel wrote in ‘kicker’ that it “becomes more dangerous the more boastful you appear.” He further advised the young colleague: “Spreading optimism is part of it. But you should always mix in a good dose of humility.”

These are precisely the discussions that the club wanted to avoid with the signing of Wagner. Instead of sinking into the relegation battle, they dreamed of a sporting and table step forward. But currently, the motto must be to get something countable again.

The away game at the point-less bottom of the table from Heidenheim comes at the perfect time. The Swabian adversary is considered by many experts to be the weakest team in the Bundesliga and almost certain to be relegated. If you MUST score points, then against Heidenheim.

But if Wagner and Augsburg lose again against the clear outsider from Ostalb, not only the red lantern but also the first real crisis of this season threatens.

Of course, the club management will not (yet) sack Wagner in such a case. Five matchdays make just as little a relegation candidate as a Europa League aspirant. But the mix of big words and missing results is extremely dangerous. And the fans already proved last weekend that their patience has limits.

Wagner is thus facing his first real test in the top flight. He can talk, no question. Now he has to deliver. In a way, Germany’s former favorite football player is playing for his future against Heidenheim!

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.

📸 Christian Kaspar-Bartke – 2025 Getty Images