Augsburg vs. Bayern München preview: League leaders face tough test
| Karry Kane, Raphael Guerreiro and Leroy Sane celebrate the latter's second goal of the afternoon against St. Pauli. | Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images |
Augsburg
Since losing 1-0 against VfB Stuttgart on January 12th, Augsburg have conceded just three goals in the Bundesliga, while remaining unbeaten in the league since then.
Die Fuggerstädter were held to a 1-1 draw in Sinsheim last time out, with Samuel Essende's strike moments after half time being cancelled out by an Andrej Kramaric penalty that levelled the scoring for Hoffenheim.
With a tally of 39 points, Jess Thorup's men sit just outside the European positions and have made themselves firm outsiders thanks to their Rückrunde form, and are now a completely different proposition for opponents Bayern München when compared to the side that lost 3-0 at Allianz Arena back in November.
A positive home record will provide hope heading into the fixture however, with Augsburg losing just three of their 14 matches at WWK Arena this season, with seven victories being picked up.
Team News
Thorup can boast the fact that he has an almost fully fit squad to pick from. However, the Dane will be unable to select Robbert Gummy and Yusuf Kabadayi, who are both sidelined due to injury.
Bayern München
The league leaders were able to get back to winning ways in the Bundesliga last time out, winning 3-2 against St. Pauli after picking up a draw and a loss against Bochum and Union Berlin before the international break.
However, defensive frailties were commonplace last time out, and Kompany will be concerned, particularly with the absences of Alphonso Davies, Hiroki Ito, and Dayot Upamecano.
At the other end of the pitch though, Bayern have now scored three or more goals in 17 of their 27 league outings, with the overall tally of 78 being a huge reason as to why the record champions are firm favourites to claim back the Meisterschale come May.
Complacency will have to be avoided however, with fixtures against Borussia Dortmund, Mainz, RB Leipzig and Borussia Mönchengladbach all awaiting before the season's end alongside two legs of Champions League quarter-final action against Inter.
Team News
After losing Manuel Neuer last month, Kompany has seen his squad list get thinner and thinner over the course of recent weeks.
Hiroki Ito joins fellow defenders Dayot Upamecano and Alphonso Davies on the sidelines, while midfielders Aleksandar Pavlovic and Leon Goretzka, and wideman Kingsley Coman will also miss out.
