FC Magdeburg vs Eintracht Braunschweig preview: Two new coaches looking to make their mark | OneFootball

FC Magdeburg

Magdeburg come into the season hoping their new head coach can push them a step further after a campaign in which promotion looked a real possibility for long stretches. However, a disappointing run-in saw them slip to a fifth-place finish, ultimately falling short of their Bundesliga dream.

With long-serving coach Christian Titz departing for Hannover over the summer, the reins have been handed to Markus Fiedler, who arrives after working his way through the ranks at VfB Stuttgart. Fiedler previously guided Stuttgart’s U17s and reserve side, helping the latter achieve promotion to the 3. Liga.

Some supporters remain unconvinced by the club’s transfer activity, especially considering the departure of six players. Magdeburg have only brought in Laurin Ulrich and Noah Pesch (both on loan), prompting concerns about squad depth. That said, the retention of Martijn Kaars, last season’s top scorer with 19 league goals, provides hope that the club can stay competitive.

Fiedler expressed optimism heading into the opener: “We've taken the necessary steps in training, which gives us confidence, we want to reward the spectators, who had to wait so long for our first home win last season, with our first win this weekend,” the 39-year-old announced.

A record crowd could be on hand to witness it. As of Friday, 28,100 tickets have been sold, including 15,650 season tickets - a club record. The all-time stadium record of 28,350 may well be broken.

Team News:

Defender Daniel Heber is still sidelined with a knee injury, Samuel Loric and Dariusz Stalmach are also reportedly unavailable for the game. Tobias Müller had some knee problems earlier on in the week but looks set to make it after resuming training on Wednesday.

Eintracht Braunschweig

After narrowly escaping relegation via the playoff, Braunschweig will be hoping for a more stable campaign under new coach Heiner Backhaus, who joined from Alemannia Aachen. With his playing career often being likened to that of a journeyman, Backhaus is hoping to build something more lasting in the dugout.

Though for Backhaus, looking back on previous struggles isn’t an option, as he looks forward to future success: “I'm no clairvoyant, I can only say that we're not looking at the past few years at all. We can only prepare as well as possible for the start of the season, and that's what we've done. Only that increases the chances of a successful start to the season and the belief. We simply believe in ourselves. We shouldn't talk so much about what happened before. That's paralyzing. We're traveling to Magdeburg full of anticipation. The desire to achieve something is much greater than the fear of not achieving it. That's our credo; we want to carry this energy into the league.”

The club has recruited smartly, adding a trio from Schalke - Mehmet Aydin, Ron-Thorben Hoffmann, and Lino Tempelmann - for a combined €400k. The arrivals of Louis Breunig, Robin Heußer, and Lukas Frenkert further strengthen the squad with much-needed 2. Bundesliga experience.

Braunschweig’s recent record against Magdeburg leaves room for improvement: they’ve won just once in the last six meetings. That will be a motivating factor heading into Sunday.

Team News:

Midfielder Sidney Raebiger and new summer signing Frederick Jakel are confirmed to miss out via injury. It is believed that Robin Krauße and Robin Heußer are both 50/50 with decisions to be made closer to gameday.

Predicted Line-ups

FC Magdeburg (4-2-3-1):

Reimann (GK) - Musonda, Müller, Hugonet, Hercher - Gnaka, Mathisen - Nollenberger, Ulrich, Atik - Kaars

With Daniel Heber out, we are likely to see Philipp Hercher shift into a full-back role for the time being. There has been much debate around young winger Magnus Baars and whether he deserves the nod after an impressive showing in the last friendly against Wolfsburg, he could possibly replace Alexander Nollenberger in the line-up.

Eintracht Braunschweig (3-4-2-1):

Hoffmann (GK) - Ehlers, Frenkert, Köhler - Di Michele Sanchez, Tempelmann, Heußer, Aydin - Gomez, Conteh - Yardimci

Should Robin Heußer get the all clear he is expected to start in the middle with Lino Tempelmann. New signing Erencan Yardimci, on loan from Hoffenheim, is set to lead the line after a strong showing against Hansa Rostock in the final friendly, where he netted twice.