The Cannstatt boys are unbeaten in their last three Bundesliga meetings with Augsburg, keeping a clean sheet in all three. The last two have ended 1-0, with Anastasios Donis scoring the only goal of the game in a home win earlier this season and Mario Gomez netting the winner on VfB’s last visit to the WWK Arena in February 2018. Markus Weinzierl and his side will be looking to extend that run on Saturday (kick-off 15:30 CEST).
Midfield pair could return
“We’ll be prepared for the special nature of the game and the ferocious atmosphere on Saturday,” commented Weinzierl. The VfB head coach, whose team will be backed by over 3,000 supporters in Bavaria, came out fighting in his pre-match press conference. “It’s the duty of every individual to give their best for the club and that’s what the team will do.” While Weinzierl has no doubts regarding the mentality and spirit of his team, the 44-year-old is more concerned by their play in central midfield and up front. “We need to create more chances going forward and make better use of them.”
Meanwhile, the lack of options in central midfield is also occupying the coaching staff. “We have a personnel problem in the defensive midfield position, which makes life more difficult.” Not only is he without the suspended Santiago Ascacibar, but captain Christian Gentner remains a doubt as he recovers from a calf strain. “There’s a small chance he could return to full training on Thursday or Friday,” revealed Weinzierl. Holger Badstuber has also missed training this week due to a calf problem but on the positive side, Dennis Aogo is fit again having shrugged off a thigh injury and could make his comeback in midfield on Saturday.