VfL Wolfsburg continue their bid for a place in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday 20 October (kick-off 18:45 CEST), when they visit FC Salzburg in their second away game in the competition this season.
After drawing 1-1 at Sevilla in their opening match, the Austrian champions beat OSC Lille 2-1 at home in their second group game to climb to the top of Group G. Wednesday will be the first ever meeting between these two teams.
With 15 league titles and eight cup wins to their name, Salzburg are the top team in Austria these days. Players like Marcel Sabitzer (Bayern Munich), Erling Haaland (Borussia Dortmund), Sadio Mane and Naby Keita (both Liverpool) are products of the Salzburg academy. VfL midfielder Xaver Schlager has also played for the club, who are known for relying on talented youngsters.
Head coach Matthias Jaissle and midfielder Nicolas Seiwald shared their thoughts on the game against the Wolves at Tuesday’s pre-match press conference.
Matthias Jaissle: Wolfsburg are a very strong team. For the most part, they will operate in a 4-2-3-1 while switching positions regularly. They try to hit early crosses in the final third. It’s going to be a challenge to defend well and apply pressure early on.
Nicolas Seiwald: I’m expecting a really strong opponent and hope we’ll play with courage, bring our style of football onto the pitch and give 100 per cent. We obviously want to remain unbeaten and we’ll do everything to do so.
