Augsburg vs. Werder Bremen preview: Fuggerstädter aiming for another home victory
Augsburg will attempt to secure their fourth consecutive Bundesliga home win when they face Werder Bremen on Saturday.
| Photo: FC Augsburg |
Augsburg
There has been a clear difference between Augsburg's home and away form in 2023. Enrico Maaßen's side have won all three of their league games since the turn of the year by a 1-0 scoreline. However, all four of their Bundesliga away matches during the current calendar year have ended in defeat.
Augsburg made the trip to the Olympiastadion last weekend to face Hertha BSC. It proved to be a forgettable afternoon, as goals from Marco Richter and Dodi Lukebakio condemned Augsburg to a 2-0 defeat.
Although the Fuggerstädter have fared well in their recent home games, their Bundesliga status is far from secure. They head into Saturday's contest in 13th place - five points above the bottom three.
After securing a 1-0 victory over Bremen in the reverse fixture in September, Augsburg will have the chance to achieve a league double over Die Werderaner on Saturday.
Team News
The hosts are unable to call upon the services of Felix Uduokhai, Elvis Rexhbecaj, Reece Oxford, Andre Hahn and Tobias Strobl. Meanwhile, Irvin Cardona is a doubt due to a foot problem.
Werder Bremen
After losing consecutive games, Bremen returned to winning ways in style last weekend. Goals from Niclas Füllkrug, Niklas Schmidt and Marvin Ducksch guided Bremen to a comfortable 3-0 home win over Bochum, which leaves them in ninth position and eight points adrift of the top six.
More importantly, Die Werderaner are now 11 points clear of the bottom three, which represents success after winning promotion back to the Bundesliga last season.
Although they seem to have secured their top-flight status for another season, they will be keen to improve on their recent away form, after losing four of their last five Bundesliga matches on the road. Ole Werner will be concerned by the fact that they conceded 17 goals across those four away defeats.
Bremen began the campaign with three wins and two draws in their opening five away league games, and they will be looking to rediscover that form this weekend.
Team News
Bremen will be unable to call upon the services of Lee Buchanan and Niklas Stark, who have both joined Manuel Mbom, Dikeni Salifou and Felix Agu in the treatment room. There is also doubts over the availability Milos Veljkovic, but Mitchell Weiser is expected to return after missing the club's last two games.