FC Augsburg play their first home Bundesliga clash against champions Bayern Munich, who are aiming to continue their dominant start to the season.

Sandro Wagner opened his account in the Bundesliga with a stellar win away from home to Freiburg at the opening weekend. For Augsburg, it was a bit of a change in the way they play compared to how they ended the previous campaign, and they will be up against Bayern Munich up next.

Augsburg had not scored three goals in 13 games, and they had scored one or fewer in 11 games during that run. This post at Augsburg, being Wagner’s first ever head coach role, the win over Frieburg will have boosted his confidence, although the third-placed side now takes on leaders and reigning champions Bayern Munich in the first home game of their Bundesliga season.

Bayern Munich’s opening weekend win over RB Leipzig will not have come as a surprise to their supporters, as the 6-0 thrashing is how they would have envisaged the start of the season. Vincent Kompany’s side made a statement of intent with a stellar win over their supposed rivals and will aim to build momentum from here on.

Kompany will be eager to build momentum and race ahead in the early part of the season to allow them some wriggle room ahead of their Champions League campaign. At Bayern Munich, the ultimate objective will point towards winning the European crown, although over the last few seasons, Bayer Leverkusen have given them a run for their money when it comes to winning the Bundesliga.

Team News & Tactics

FC Augsburg

Sandro Wagner will once again consider a more pragmatic approach by emphasising defence. The method worked out against SC Freiburg, but against Bayern Munich, the FC Augsburg manager would need his backline to perform at their best levels. Centre-backs Chrislain Matsima, Jeffrey Gouweleeuw and Keven Schlotterbeck are all expected to start again in the back three setup.

Dimitris Giannoulis and Maximilian Bauer are doubts, with the former recovering from a knock against Freiburg. Wagner would call in Robin Fellhauer to play out of position and ask him to cover the left wing-back slot, with Marius Wolf expected on the opposite flank.

Alexis Claude-Maurice is the only confirmed absentee, while striker Samuel Essende must serve his suspension for the second game running following his red card in the final game of last season.

Wagner is expected to field Kristijan Jakic and Han-Noah Massengo as his midfield pairing, while Elias Saad and Mert Komur in the advanced positions. Phillip Tietz will lead the line for Augsburg to get the better of the Bayern Munich defenders.

Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Dahmen; Matsima, Gouweleeuw, Schlotterbeck; Wolf, Jakic, Massengo, Fellhauer; Saad, Komur; Tietz

Bayern Munich

Vincent Kompany will have to contend without a few of his key stars such as Alphonso Davies, Hiroki Ito, Jamal Musiala, and Tom Bischof. The Bayern Munich manager is likely to field a familiar team from their big win over Leipzig when they take on FC Augsburg, which could see Konrad Laimer taking up the right-back slot, while Joshua Kimmich playing the deeper role in central midfield.

Leon Goretzka will partner up with the latter in the central zones, while Jonathan Tah should partner with Dayot Upamecano in central defence. Josip Stanisic should continue at left-back, while 39-year-old veteran Manuel Neuer will take his place between the sticks as Bayern’s undisputed No.1 heading into the new campaign.

Luis Diaz, who scored from both his shots against Leipzig, will aim to have another monumental game for Bayern Munich, as he would have the likes of Serge Gnabry, Michael Olise and striker Harry Kane alongside in the attacking setup against FC Augsburg.

Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Neuer; Laimer, Upamecano, Tah, Stanisic; Kimmich, Goretzka; Olise, Gnabry, Diaz; Kane

Key Stats

• Augsburg have not won at home in their last four games.
• Augsburg have lost each of their last six games against Bayern Munich.
• Bayern Munich have scored at least three goals in their last six matches against Augsburg in all competitions.
• Bayern Munich have scored at least two goals in their last nine matches in the Bundesliga.

Player to Watch

Harry Kane

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Kane scored his eighth hat-trick of his Bayern Munich career when he secured the treble against RB Leipzig at the opening weekend. It is another incredible record for the England captain at the Bavarian giants, where he has reached 90 goals from 99 official games.

Heading into the new season, Kane is widely tipped to secure another top goalscorer accolade in the Bundesliga, and probably challenge for the European Golden Boot. The Bayern Munich striker will be the biggest threat to the FC Augsburg defence, and one to keep an eye out for in this clash on Saturday.

Prediction

FC Augsburg 0-4 Bayern Munich

The opening weekend victory aside, FC Augsburg did not end their season well, and coming up against Bayern Munich will be a big test of character for Sandro Wagner’s side. They might have come out on top against SC Frieburg, but Bayern Munich are a different animal and in top form too.

Bayern Munich’s rampant start to the season will likely continue against Augsburg, and they have a favourable record against the hosts. It’s clear as day to predict another big win for Vincent Kompany’s men, with the attacking setup likely to shine once again, as well as the defence, who are expected to keep a clean sheet.