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September 16, 2024
After Augsburg claimed their first win of the season with a 3-1 home victory over St. Pauli on Sunday, both the team and coach commended the impressive performances of several new signings.
In a match featuring strong showings from Keven Schlotterbeck, Samuel Essende, Yusuf Kabadayi, and Dimitrios Giannoulis, Marius Wolf and Frank Onyeka garnered the most acclaim.
Five lineup changes following the league defeat to Heidenheim enabled Jess Thorup’s FC Augsburg to secure their first win of the 2024/25 season against FC St. Pauli on Sunday. In a promising sign for Thorup’s squad, several new summer signings made an immediate impact.
Veteran Marius Wolf, who joined on a free transfer after his contract with Dortmund was not renewed, scored the opening goal shortly after halftime. The 29-year-old German international has now netted for five different Bundesliga clubs: Dortmund, Eintracht Frankfurt, Köln, Hertha, and FCA.
Wolf’s wingback partner, Dimitrios Giannoulis—also signed this summer—delivered a strong performance, as did newcomers Samuel Essende, Frank Onyeka, and Yusuf Kabadayi, all of whom scored. Nigerian international Onyeka received the most praise from both teammates and the coach.
“He [Onyeka] only trained twice and was on international duty [with Nigeria],” Thorup raved while conducting his post-match interview with German broadcaster DAZN, “Right from the start, he showed us what a good player he is. He’s ready to help the team. That’s what he did today.”
“Maybe the only thing missing in the end is a goal,” Thorup continued, “Even though he had an assist and played very well. Considering it was his first game, it was an outstanding performance.”
“[Onyeka] had a great debut,” goal-scorer Philipp Tietz added. I think we have a great bunch in the locker room. The boys are really firing each other up, and the team spirit is top-notch.”
“When you look at their faces, you see smiles all round,” Tietz noted further, “It’s good for us to have different cultures and mentalities. Now it’s about building this together and something really big can come of it.”
“These are top new signings, also in terms of character,” FCA attacking midfielder Elvis Rexhbecaj said, “We need this quality. Marius has always proven his qualities and has a lot of Bundesliga experience.”
As VfB Stuttgart, the 2023/24 Bundesliga runners-up, gear up for their Champions League debut tomorrow, one of the players who was not included in the squad has shared his thoughts in an interview with Germany’s leading football publication.
Twenty-two-year-old Germany U21 striker Nick Woltemade was not selected for VfB Stuttgart coach Sebastian Hoeneß’s Champions League squad this autumn.
After a highly successful international break with Antonio di Salvo’s U21 team, the new summer signing from VfB had the opportunity to share his thoughts with German football journalist Tim Lüddecke of Kicker Magazine.
Woltemade described his conversation with Hoeneß
“I had a brief conversation with the coach [Hoeneß],” Woltemade told Lüddecke last week, “There weren’t many words from my side. I think in such situations, it’s hard to say anything.”
“The [UCL Roster] rules are stupid to be honest,” Woltemade continued, “You’re in the [league] match-day squad every week and then have to be left out. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to be there.”
“But I’m very happy about the way I’m being worked in at Stuttgart,” Woltemade continued, “I knew [when deciding to move to Stuttgart] that the Champions’ League might not come.”
“I’ll support from the stands,” the heavily capped German youth international concluded, “I think it’s awesome for the club and the community. My time in the Champions League will come.”
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Katarzyna Nowak is a seasoned writer with over five years of experience in editorial content, news reporting, and cricket sportsbook app reviews. As an author for Latest Football News, she combines her deep understanding of the sports betting industry with a passion for cricket, delivering insightful and accurate content that keeps readers informed and engaged.
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