Hahn, Gikiewicz, Caligiuri and Strobl to leave FCA
Players to say goodbye before the Dortmund game
First Team
19.05.2023, 15:14
FC Augsburg have decided to not extend the contracts of André Hahn, Rafał Gikiewicz, Daniel Caligiuri and Tobias Strobl. The four players will say goodbye to the FCA fans before Sunday’s home game against Borussia Dortmund at the WWK Arena.
André Hahn, currently out with a knee injury, played 171 times in all competitions for the club. He initially joined in January 2013 from Kickers Offenbach and made his Germany debut in May 2014. Hahn joined Borussia Mönchengladbach the following season, only to return to FCA in July 2018 after a spell with Hamburger SV.
“André Hahn began his Bundesliga career with FCA and became a Germany player whilst at the club. He possesses a lot of the values that are important to us, but has unfortunately spent most of this season on the sidelines with a bad injury. We would like to thank André for everything he’s done for FCA and wish him all the best for the future,” said sporting director Stefan Reuter.
“Everybody knows how much FCA means to me, which is why it’s a shame that my time here is coming to an end in the summer. I’m now focusing on getting back on the pitch after my knee injury. I would like to thank the whole club and especially the fans, whose support has always been amazing over all these years,” said André Hahn.
Gikiewicz’s extension clause not come into effect after shoulder injury
Rafał Gikiewicz, who joined FCA from Union Berlin in 2020, has only played 23 games this season due to injury. The 35-year-old Polish goalkeeper, who has missed the last few weeks with a shoulder problem, can no longer reach the number of Bundesliga games required for an automatic contract extension of one year. “Now the clause can no longer be triggered, we have decided to not extend his contract and told Rafał this just before the final home game so he can say goodbye to the fans on Sunday,” revealed Stefan Reuter. “We would also like to thank him for the last three years. We wish him all the best with his next club.”
“My time in Augsburg is coming to an end after three years. I would like to wish the team all the best for the final two games, as well as for next season,” said Rafał Gikiewicz.
Caligiuri and Strobl also leaving
Daniel Caligiuri and Tobias Strobl’s contracts will also expire in a couple of weeks. Daniel Caligiuri arrived in Augsburg from FC Schalke 04 in 2020 and played 79 competitive matches for the club. The vice-captain has featured 13 times this season in the league. “Having to part ways is something that simply just happens in football, but I’ll still look back fondly on my three years in Augsburg. I wish Augsburg all the best for the future and hope I can meet the club next season as I would like to continue my career in the Bundesliga,” stated the 35-year-old.
“We would also like to thank Daniel Caligiuri for his time with FC Augsburg and wish him all the best. He’s played a big part in us achieving our minimum target of staying up in each of the last three seasons,” praised Stefan Reuter.
Tobias Strobl hasn’t been able to feature this season after tearing his ACL in November 2021 in Wolfsburg. As a result, the 33-year-old will be ending his playing career. “I’ve had a lot of time to prepare for the end of my career due to my long-term injury, but the closer I get to it, the sadder I am that I’ll never play again. Nonetheless, I’ve got some exciting projects in mind and I’ll spend my time on them in the future. I wish FCA all the best,” commented Tobias Strobl.
“It’s a shame that Tobias Strobl could only play 37 games for us over the last three years due to his bad injury. It’s even more of a shame that he has to retire due to this injury. I’m nevertheless confident that Tobi will find lots of interesting things away from the pitch that will make him happy. We would like to wish him all the best with his first steps in his new chapter of life,” said Stefan Reuter.
