After a difficult end to 2015, FC Augsburg were able to bring themselves back to finish in 12th place in the Bundesliga.

They will start their sixth Bundesliga season under new manager Dirk Schuster, after Markus Weinzierl made his way to Schalke 04.

Past Season

Augsburg found themselves in the relegation places for a long amount of time at the start of the season, but part of this could have been caused by their Europa League campaign.

After their Nov. 8 loss against Werder Bremen, who finished on the same amount of points as them by the end of their season, Augsburg were bottom of the table with just six points.

It took them a few weeks, but by the time the Christmas period came they were back up to 12th. In five matches they won four and drew one, which more than tripled their points total at the beginning of November.

They had some trouble again in 2016, dropping down to 16th on April 2 after picking up just one win after the break. Like in November they improved, winning three in a row against the likes of Werder Bremen, VfB Stuttgart and VfL Wolfsburg. They finished 12th and ahead of Werder Bremen and Darmstadt thanks to goal difference.

Their appearance in both the DFB Pokal and Europa League went well. For the former they swept past their first two competitors, but lost out to Borussia Dortmund.

Augsburg were able to progress to the Europa League knockout rounds, after finishing second in their group. It was a close call, as they narrowly beat third place Partizan thanks to goal difference. They were knocked out by eventual finalists Liverpool, although only because of a penalty in the second leg.

Transfers

Their main piece of transfer activity involved a player that joined them on loan during the winter. Alfred Finnbogason ended up being brought in permanently by Augsburg after scoring seven goals in 15 league appearances.

Other Transfers

Takashi Usami (LW) – from Gamba Osaka – £1.3 million

Marvin Friedrich (CB) – from Schalke 04 – £850k

Gojko Kacar (CDM) – from Hamburger SV – free transfer

Georg Tiegl (RB) – from Red Bull Leipzig – free transfer

Andreas Luthe (GK) – from VfL Bochum – free transfer

Two of the players that have departed Augsburg this season have made their way to Premier League side Liverpool. Goalkeeper Alexander Manninger went on a free transfer, while centre back Ragnar Klavan cost the side around £4.2 million.

They also lost centre back Jeong-Ho Hong to the Chinese Super League, he cost JS Suning around £5.1 million. Tobias Werner left for relegated Stuttgart while Nikola Djurdjic made his way to Partizan.

Ones to Watch

Alfred Finnbogason

The striker was impressive during his loan stint with Augsburg, and was also part of the Iceland team that impressively made their way to the quarter finals of Euro 2016. He hasn’t spent more than two seasons at a club since he left Iceland, but Augsburg could be the 27-year-old’s home for longer.

Raul Bobadilla

The Argentinian star didn’t have the best season in the Bundesliga, scoring just four times in 27 games. He performed well in the Europa League however, was the sides top scorer in 2014/15, and has already scored once in pre-season. Bobadilla will want to get back on form again this season.

Predictions

Augsburg could be in for another season around the middle of the table, although the fact that they won’t have to worry about the Europa League will work in their favour.

Compared to some of their rivals their pre-season matches have been more successful, losing twice and winning three games. Other than the two defeats they have kept clean sheets in all their games, which could provide a good starting point for the upcoming season.

Their first game of the season is against VfL Wolfsburg at home. They will then travel to Werder Bremen and will return home for their third Bundesliga match against Mainz 05. They have a good chance of starting the season well and keeping the momentum going through to 2017.