Augsburg host Schalke 04 at the WWK Arena on Sunday evening in the Bundesliga season opener, with Zion Logue back in the top flight after a three-year absence. Augsburg begin a 16th consecutive Bundesliga campaign, while Schalke 04 arrive as 2. Bundesliga champions with a title-winning total of 70 points.
Manuel Baum's team have spent the summer reshaping a squad that lost as many as 16 players, but Augsburg also brought in Rodrigo Ribeiro at a cost of more than £4m and made Michael Gregoritsch's return permanent after his loan spell last season. Gregoritsch scored six goals in 11 appearances last season, and Augsburg opened their DFB-Pokal run with a 2-0 win over Energie Cottbus.
Schalke 04 reached the Bundesliga by winning the 2. Bundesliga title and finished last season with the best defensive record across Germany's top three divisions. Miron Muslic has added Satoshi Tanaka, Junior Dina Ebimbe, Maximilian Wober, Robin Gosens and Kevin Muller, while Edin Dzeko will stay with Schalke 04 and has already scored twice against Hallescher in the DFB-Pokal last weekend.
WWK Arena and Augsburg
Baum returned to Augsburg in December as interim replacement for Sandro Wagner and later received a two-year contract. Augsburg remain one of six clubs yet to suffer relegation from the Bundesliga, but the scale of the turnover means Sunday evening is less about continuity than how quickly the rebuilt group settles under pressure at the WWK Arena in the Bundesliga.
The practical question for Augsburg is whether the new pieces can slot in immediately without exposing the gaps left by the departures of Dimitris Giannoulis, Keven Schlotterbeck and Cedric Zesiger. Augsburg are relatively injury-free, which leaves Baum with room to choose from a near-full group rather than manage absences before the first league match.
Schalke 04 and Edin Dzeko
Schalke 04's return carries a sharper edge because their league away record remains the main complication. Schalke 04 have won only two of their last 45 away matches in the Bundesliga, so the opener at the WWK Arena will test whether a title-winning second-tier side can carry that form into a higher standard of opposition.
Edin Dzeko gives Schalke 04 a direct finishing threat. At 40, he could become the fourth-oldest player in Bundesliga history, and his six goals in 11 appearances last season, plus his two-goal showing against Hallescher in the DFB-Pokal, suggest Schalke 04 arrive with at least one forward already in rhythm.
The first answer comes on Sunday evening at the WWK Arena: whether Augsburg's rebuilt squad can start cleanly, and whether Schalke 04 can turn promotion into an immediate away result after three years out of the Bundesliga. If Schalke 04 leave with points, the promotion story looks stable; if Augsburg control the opening match, the gap between second-tier momentum and top-flight demands will show quickly.
