The upcoming opponent is one of the benchmarks in youth development in German football. FC Augsburg wants to get to where SC Freiburg is. Three points on Saturday are important for this in the short term, but much more in terms of perspective.
Stefan Reuter put the problem in a nutshell. “When the youth performance centres came into being in Germany, FC Augsburg did not exist in paid football,” the sporting director said on Thursday. In February 2001, the organisation of youth development for first division clubs, which is now taken for granted, was decided. As a premier league club, FCA was far from having to think about the issue at the time.
Gradually, however, Augsburg climbed the ladder and finally arrived in the Bundesliga in 2011. Gradually, the promotion of young talent developed as well. “We had a lot of catching up to do,” Reuter emphasised. One of the final steps in this process is imminent. In the summer, the club’s own boarding school with space for 24 players is to be opened. “It is the last big infrastructure project. Then we will really have a youth development centre here that is comparable to those of other Bundesliga clubs,” said the sporting director. In 2014, the opening of the functional building made the first big step, many more have followed since then. None of this was cheap. Managing director Michael Ströll put the infrastructural expenditure since completion of the arena at around 40 million euros.
In the long run, this should pay off. SC Freiburg, guests in the Fuggerstadt on Saturday, shows how it works. “In that respect, the Freiburgers really are an absolute role model,” Reuter emphasised. “But we are trying to shorten the gaps, to catch up, and we are stepping on the gas in developing our own players.”
But despite the gap, Reuter also saw FC Augsburg on a good path in recent years. With Marco Richter, who moved to Hertha for around seven million euros before the season, and Kevin Danso (to RC Lens for 5.5 million), Reuter points to two home-grown players who were only sold last summer. However, the 16th-placed team lacks the quality of these two. At the moment, the situation looks less rosy.
Augsburg talents Günther and Civeja
With Raphael Framberger, a home-grown player – and even a native of Augsburg – has recently played his way back into the first eleven, but at 26 years of age, the right-back is no longer considered a young talent or a promise for the future. Co-coach Reiner Maurer, who will replace head coach Markus Weinzierl against Sport-Club after his positive Coronatest, mentions Lasse Günther in this context. Whether the 18-year-old variable winger will assert himself in the Bundesliga cannot yet be assessed after 49 minutes of action spread over two games. Reuter also brought Tim Civeja (20) into the game. The central midfielder collected 31 minutes in three games in pre-season but has been left out this season.
The pandemic and its aftermath have been anything but beneficial to the overall situation. “The development training of talents”, which is “very close to Maurer’s heart”, had to be cancelled for months. The meetings of professionals and youth players on the training pitch have also been virtually cancelled in order to avoid potential infection risks. The 62-year-old hopes for “a boost from the boarding school”.
The professionals could use a boost right away. Because as nice as the whole infrastructure is, if the first Bundesliga relegation is determined at the end of the season, the youth work will not become any easier. On Saturday, FCA should also take SC Freiburg and their current season as an example on the pitch.
