Football Season Guide

It was more of the same from Braunschweig last season, a battle to avoid relegation in which they eventually succeeded. A decision to replace Backhaus with Kornetka in March proved to be the correct one. Braunschweig have conducted a major overhaul in the summer with Kornetka aiming to build a squad to take the club forward. So far 12 have joined, which includes the permanent signings of loan players Flick and Jakel. Seven of the new players are under the age of 23, so this is a gamble. Junior Ze, Di Benedetto, and Kovacevic have the credentials to make an impact straight away, but Sturm, Wagner and Urbich are likely to need time. Bodon is one for the future. The loan signing of left-back Katterbach could prove to be a good one, but he has found playing time hard to come by in the last few years with Hamburger. More is needed in attack this season for Braunschweig and they are hoping Austrian Entrup is the answer after impressing at former club Lask, this is his first taste of German football so he may need time to adapt. Braunschweig are likely to show plenty of fighting spirit under Kornetka, and with the core of the squad still largely intact, they could spring a surprise or two. This is not the first time the club have made big changes in the summer so if the new players fail to settle quickly, they could be in danger of another difficult campaign. Keeping key players Hoffmann and Tempelmann fit is also crucial.