Farke ahead of #FCABMG: "Have to be ready to take on this challenge"

Head coach Daniel Farke spoke to the media ahead of the Foals Bundesliga away game against FC Augsburg (Wednesday, 20:30 CET). Here’s what he had to say.

Daniel Farke on…

...the defeat against Leverkusen yesterday: Particularly in the opening phase of the match, we lacked the quality to convert our dominance into anything meaningful. We had a lot of good moments, but often made the wrong decision in the final third and after that failed to create enough clear-cut chances from our periods of dominant play. We lacked that necessary edge in challenges.

…a return to the starting eleven for Ko Itakura: He put in a very respectable and solid performance against Leverkusen, especially considering that he was out for a long time because of his injury. When you ship three goals, you are obviously not pleased as a defender. All in all though, he brought everything what we wanted to see and won a lot of duels. It was a good comeback and we are happy that he is back.

…squad news for the game in Augsburg: We are cautiously optimistic about Marcus Thuram. He was able to train with the team today without any issues and looked good. We will have to see now how his body reacts to that. As well as he feels fine, he will be available. Lars Stindl, meanwhile, will miss out due to his suspension. All other players are available as it stands. 

…FC Augsburg: We know that there is a tough task ahead of us and we are very respectful. Augsburg are a team that know exactly what they are about. They are a battle-hardened and experienced team in relegation battles. Especially in home games, they are extremely competitive and powered by emotion. We have to be accordingly well-prepared and ready to take on this challenge and their intensity.

…the approach to the game against FCA: It will be important for us to produce a balanced performance. We have to contend with a way of playing that is focussed around duels from Augsburg and at the same time also use our own strengths. If we do that successfully, we have a good chance to take some points away with us.

…Borussia’s away record: We have to score more goals away from home and concede fewer, that is for certain. I don’t like to bring up the record again. We have to focus on our performance. At Bundesliga level, every game is difficult. Up until now, we haven’t managed to pick up three points away from home, but we will definitely give everything to achieve this. On Wednesday and then Saturday, we will have the next opportunities to do this.

…the current winter transfer window: We will stay alert right until the end of the window. It was important for us to have made the big decisions ahead of the Bundesliga restart. We will now only make further decisions when they make sense for everyone involved.