Manuel Baum speaks on Augsburg’s rise to the top of the Bundesliga table
· Yahoo Sports
FC Augsburg head coach Manuel Baum credited the strength of his deep squad after Sunday’s remarkable Bundesliga comeback victory away at Eintracht Frankfurt carried the Fuggerstädter to the top of the Bundesliga table for the first time in club history.
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Few would have anticipated such an outcome after the opening 45 minutes.
Frankfurt dominated virtually every phase of the first half, took an early lead through Jonathan Burkardt and repeatedly threatened to extend it. Dahmen produced several important saves to ensure Augsburg entered the dressing room only one goal behind.
“I think we really saw two completely different halves,” Baum noted in his opening press-conference statement. “I think we can all thank Finn Dahmen, who made three or four big saves, for the fact that we were only trailing 0-1. I don’t think we really threw ourselves into the challenges [in the first half] and I think what aggravated me the most is that we were always playing the ball back even when we won balls or were in possession.”
The contrast with what followed could scarcely have been greater.
Arijon Ibrahimović equalized less than a minute after the restart on his Augsburg debut. Barely a minute later, Robin Fellhauer reacted quickest after Noah Atubolu spilled another Ibrahimović effort to put the visitors ahead.
By the time substitute Alexis Claude-Maurice and Fabian Rieder added two outstanding finishes, Augsburg had turned one of their poorest halves under Baum into one of their most memorable Bundesliga victories.
Baum gives existing constellation ten more minutes
Baum revealed that wholesale halftime changes had actually been under consideration. Instead, the coach challenged the same personnel to correct matters themselves.
“We talked about it at halftime and committed to just another ten minutes in the [existing tactical] constellation,” Baum said. “The tens [Robin Fellhauer and Arijon Ibrahimović] then swapped sides. And then, after [Augsburg scored two goals in] two minutes [after the restart], I think both of us [Eintracht head coach Adi Hütter as well] were standing there shaking our heads.”
Ibrahimović, who only completed his loan move from Bayern Munich on transfer deadline day, had been handed his Augsburg debut after muscular problems ruled Anton Kade out. The 20-year-old needed only one Bundesliga half in his new colors before opening his account.
His involvement in both of Augsburg’s rapid goals also provided immediate justification for a late-window move that substantially increased Baum’s options behind the striker. Get German Football Newsexamined the coach’s preferred 3-4-2-1 and his plans for the new campaign in an extended August interview. Baum entered the season intent on preserving much of the stability established after replacing Sandro Wagner while continuing to develop more flexible attacking solutions.
Sunday required both.
Augsburg bench vindicates squad construction
Baum reserved some of his strongest praise for Augsburg’s work away from the pitch. That depth became particularly evident after the hour mark.
“What I find increasingly important these days is that one has a super bench,” he said. “These days, one can substitute half the outfielders. What we can bring with five new additions from the bench is really good.”
Claude-Maurice replaced Ibrahimović in the 62nd minute and required only three minutes to score Augsburg’s third, turning into space and curling an excellent finish beyond Atubolu.
The French attacker’s presence itself carried some significance after an uncertain final stage of the transfer window. Sunderland submitted a late bid for Claude-Maurice after the 28-year-old had spent much of the summer linked with a possible departure.
Mert Kömür, another second-half substitute, supplied additional attacking energy. The German youth international remains one of the club’s most valuable young assets. Baum believes having players of such quality outside the initial XI is becoming increasingly decisive.
“We had [two] great transfer windows,” Baum said. “We have some really cool players at the moment and that’s helping us to believe in ourselves.”
Augsburg’s “sensational” squad planning bears fruit
Baum’s praise reflects just how extensively Augsburg have built out the squad over the past two windows. The winter brought back Michael Gregoritsch, with GGFNcovering the Austrian striker’s return to Augsburg and reunion with a coach under whom he previously enjoyed some of the most productive years of his career.
Summer recruitment focused heavily on increasing both competition and versatility.
Hennes Behrens arrived from Hoffenheim after an encouraging loan spell at Heidenheim and entered the campaign targeting an immediate breakthrough as Augsburg’s new left wing-back. Augsburg subsequently added South Korean international Young-Woo Seol to strengthen the wing-back department further. Seol came off the bench in Frankfurt as Baum again made use of the additional flexibility available to him.
Deadline day then brought Ibrahimović and Manchester City prospect Juma Bah on loan. The result is a squad considerably deeper than the one Baum inherited during last season’s relegation fight.
That development had already been evident before competitive football resumed. GGFN’s2026/27 Augsburg tactical preview highlighted the unusually broad range of viable combinations available to Baum across defense and attack.
Even established youngsters now face significant competition. Against Frankfurt, that depth did more than provide insurance. It helped turn the match.
Baum: “I took a screenshot of the table”
Two wins from two matches have now produced a piece of Augsburg history.
After opening the season with a 3-0 victory over Schalke, Sunday’s four-goal second half moved FCA onto six points and, for the first time since arriving in the Bundesliga in 2011, into first place. Baum had no intention of pretending the moment meant nothing simply because only two matchdays have been played.
“We humans live for moments,” he said. “I think that when we see each other again in a few years, we’ll all be talking about how we were the few ones around when Augsburg topped the [Bundesliga standings]. And I think you’re allowed to enjoy that for one day. That’s why I took a screenshot of the table so that I’ll always have it on my phone. And that’s good enough for today.”
The quote fits a coach whose second Augsburg tenure has developed into something few could have predicted when he initially returned merely as an interim solution last December. Baum stabilized the club, ultimately guided Augsburg to ninth place and earned the backing of players including Rieder and Kade before agreeing to remain in charge permanently.
Just over half a year into that work, Baum now believes his players possess a memory bank of their own.
“It’s really nice that these days we have a culture in the team in which we can address things clearly,” Baum said. “It was clear that the team, in its existing form, would get another ten minutes to prove themselves. We then changed the basic structure a bit in order to stabilize. We swapped the tens. In the end, it was the team that implemented it.”
“We’ve been working together a little over a half a year now and we’ve been able to come from behind in several instances,” Baum continued. “Naturally, we draw upon that and we’ll draw upon what we did today. We can score four goals in a single half away from home. And that’s something we can carry with us.”
A home meeting with Bayer Leverkusen now awaits.
Augsburg will not remain Bundesliga leaders forever merely because Baum saved a screenshot.
For today, however, the image on his phone documents something no Augsburg coach before him could capture.