Sandro Wagner’s Bundesliga intermezzo is over. FC Augsburg and the former assistant coach of national coach Julian Nagelsmann ended the project after just five months. According to information from the German Press Agency, the separation took place by mutual consent.
At the weekend, the Swabians lost 3-0 at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim. As a result, the sporting situation in the Bundesliga continued to deteriorate. After the game, Wagner was said not to have given the impression that he could solve the sporting crisis. He himself is said to have had doubts about the success of the project. Wagner had already spoken of “25 catastrophic minutes” during the defeat, in which the score was 3-0 at the break.
The club apparently felt compelled to act. In 14 competitive games under the direction of Wagner there were four wins, one draw and nine defeats. In the summer he signed a contract in Augsburg until June 30, 2028. According to the Augsburg General Former coach Manuel Baum will take over until the end of the year. Baum was coach of the Bundesliga soccer team from 2016 to 2019. In the summer he returned to FCA as Head of Development & Football Innovation.
It is a bitter experience for the 38-year-old former national player Wagner. It was his first head coaching job in the German elite league. He even gave up his DFB position with the national team a year before the World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the USA. The former Bayern professional had previously trained in the SpVgg Unterhaching youth team and the club’s third division team, after which he moved to the German Football Association. After a position there in the youth department, he was promoted to Nagelsmann assistant.
Wagner joined FCA in the summer with great ambitions and great drive. “I am a young coach who wants to develop together with the club. The conditions for this are excellent in Augsburg. The FCA, like me, is very ambitious,” he said at the time. The start was promising, but there were quickly serious setbacks.
The club parted ways with Jess Thorup early after last season. The Dane led Augsburg to twelfth place in the 14th Bundesliga year. But those responsible around managing director Michael Ströll wanted to reach the next level of football with Wagner. With a more active and attractive style of playing as well as better support of young people. With the eloquent and self-confident Wagner, an image change should also be carried out; away from the “horrible mouse” appearance, towards a greater external impact. This was also achieved with Wagner, but not in the sporting context we had hoped for.