Karlsruhe themselves have had a rather productive summer transfer window with respect to procuring attacking additions. The Fächerstädter have secured the services of two Bundesliga prospects (Borussia Mönchengladbach’s Shio Fukuda and Werder Bremen’s Leon Opitz) on loan. Rondic will likely be sold outright for a negligible fee. 

Köln have already offloaded strikers Steffen Tigges (Paderborn) and Florian Dietz (Regensburg). A deal to send Sargis Adamyan to Osnabrück fell through due to the Armenian international declining to take a pay cut. Köln wish to move one more player off their 30-man-squad before signing Union SG wide-man Alessio Castro-Montes today.

It was revealed today that die Geißböcke do wish to surprisingly retain the services of Rondic’s fellow Bosnian international Denis Huseinbasic. The 24-year-old versatile midfielder started yesterday against Freiburg and delivered a solid performance. 

GGFN | Peter Weis

Opitz’s potential keeps him on the radar of the German FA. The Schleswig-Holstein native has represented Germany extensively at U20 level and below. Lack of playing practice nevertheless meant that Opitz was not among the new arrivals called up by Germany U21 head coach Antonio Di Salvo for the current September international break.

For a time, Opitz was linked with a loan to Holstein Kiel in his native state. The loan out to Baden still appears a solid fit for all parties involved. The KSC administrators went into considerable depth when it came to discussing Opitz’s potential. 

“Leon is a player with an exciting profile who can be used in various systems,” KSC sporting director Mario Eggimann noted in a club statement. “He brings speed, creativity, and goal-scoring threat. The loan with an option to buy gives us the opportunity to integrate him into our team in the best possible way and at the same time open up long-term prospects.“

“With Leon Opitz, we are gaining a young German top talent who fits perfectly into our strategy,” KSC managing director Timon Pauls added. “He gives us additional flexibility in the squad, can always f surprise in attack, and has a good finish with both feet. He has already impressed in the Regionalliga with an outstanding goal and assist ratio.“

“I am very grateful for the trust that KSC has placed in me,” Opitz himself said. “After my experiences at Werder, I want to take the next step here, gain playing experience, and contribute to a successful season. I’m really looking forward to the challenge and to the fans at BBBank Wildpark.“

GGFN | Peter Weis

In other Gladbach-related personnel news, Fabrizio Romano reports that the foals are awaiting USMNT international Giovanni Reyna’s decision on whether he will be joining the club. Both Gladbach and Parma have offered Borussia Dortmund around €3m to €3.5m for the 22-year-old. 

Reyna must now decide for himself where he would like to go. The 32-times-capped international has no future with his current Bundesliga club and may be tempted to depart German football entirely. Reyna’s disappointing loan stint with Nottingham Forest may nevertheless temper thoughts of moving abroad.

“Shio is a young player with a lot of potential,” BMG sporting director Roland Virkus said of the Fukuda deal. “For his further development, it is necessary for him to gain playing experience at the highest possible level. The second division offers the ideal environment to take his next steps.“

GGFN | Peter Weis

Rumors about the rather significant transfer began surfacing earlier today. Fukuda was not in the Gladbach squad for their opening round Pokal fixture over the weekend. Plettenberg reports that Fukuda is headed to the Fächerstadt to complete his medical immediately.

Fukuda has made 11 top flight appearances for Gladbach over the last two seasons. He scored his inaugural Bundesliga goal last January and also dazzled for the foals in a recent pre-season friendly over the summer. Despite this, he was not expected to earn playing time with the first team this year. 

Fukuda remains under contract with Gladbach until 2027 and maintains an estimated market value of €500,000. The deal should be confirmed by early tomorrow.

GGFN | Peter Weis

Fukuda has made 11 Bundesliga appearances over the course of the past two seasons. The Japanese U22 international scored his maiden Bundesliga goal last January in a matchday 17 loss to Wolfsburg. It remains to be seen if Gladbach wish to loan Fukuda out this year. There has been some talk of the youngster playing beside his recently acquired countryman Shuto Machino.

Should Gladbach wish to do business with the club of former club legend Lars Stindl, a loan without a purchase option might work better for the foals. Still, whether or not Roland Virkus and the BMG administrative team are even keen on that is uncertain. Gladbach retain the need for as much attacking assistance as possible until newly-anointed captain Tim Kleindienst returns in November. 

GGFN | Peter Weis

After joining Cardiff City from RB Salzburg for €2m last summer, Simic was injured for almost the entire season. “It was a new environment for me. I had no preparation. Everything was new to me. I needed time to develop but before that, I got injured. I lost a lot of time trying to figure out what kind of injury I had.”

It turned out that the Croatian forward had a nerve problem, something that took six months to diagnose.

“At the beginning, I was filled with bad thoughts,” said Simic. “I didn’t know what would happen; I couldn’t help my team. Over time, I learned to relax and be patient. I see last season as one in which I had to go through a lot and learned how to deal with difficult times. That will help me a lot in the future.”

And now Simic is injury free.

Following Cardiff’s relegation from the Championship, Simic joined 2. Bundesliga club Karlsruher SC on loan for the 2025-26 campaign, and has already made his debut in the opening round of fixtures. They had already shown previous interest in signing the Croat: “Assistant coach Zlatan Bajramovic was in Croatia two years ago to meet with my father and me. He wanted to bring me to Karlsruhe back then, but I decided otherwise.

“Now I’m very happy to be here. This is the best decision for me. All the last strikers have scored here. If I do my best, I’ll do the same,” Simic told Sky Germany.

GGFN | Daniel Pinder

Incredible atmospheres and fan culture

Until 1. FC Köln and Hamburg were promoted at the end of last season, the 2. Bundesliga for several years boasted more former German champions than the top flight. Storied clubs steeped in tradition and backed by huge followings – not just across Germany but around the world – find themselves languishing below their standards of decades gone by. All this makes for some incredible atmospheres that must be seen to be believed. And when you factor in the cost of a matchday ticket and beer, not to mention the free transport to the game, then no country rivals Germany.

It’s impossible to predict

For much of last season, 10 clubs were firmly in the promotion race until the final weeks, with the eventual top nine clubs separated by just 10 points. Elversberg upset the apple cart by finishing third and making it to the relegation playoff, just one point behind HSV. The league is simply impossible to predict, anyone can beat anyone and remains fiercely tight throughout. With a host of sides missing out on Bundesliga promotion last season, and the additions of relegated VfL Bochum and Holstein Kiel, along with 3. Liga newcomers Dynamo Dresden and none other than DFB Pokal finalists Arminia Bielefeld, the upcoming campaign promises to be even more unpredictable than the last.

A league of sleeping giants and big names

FC Köln and HSV may have earned promotion back into the top flight – the latter after a seven-year absence – but there are still a number of sleeping giants in the 2. Bundesliga. 1. FC Nürnberg, a nine-time German champion, have found themselves languishing in the second division since 2019. 1. FC Kaiserslautern – who won the Bundesliga in 1998 – found themselves in the 3. Liga in 2022 but since returned and narrowly missed out on the promotion playoff. Schalke 04 and Hertha Berlin are two clubs steeped in history with exceptional fanbases, but find themselves stuck in the second division while Hannover will also be eager to return to the Bundesliga under Christian Titz. And when it comes to big names, there are few bigger than Miroslav Klose in German football, who coaches FC Nürnberg in what is his first professional coaching job.

GGFN | Harry Good 

Simic began his career with Lokomotiva Zagreb in his native country before moving to RB Salzburg in July 2021. The Austrian Red Bulls loaned him out twice, once to Austrian second division outfit FC Liefering and another time to FC Zürich in Switzerland. Cardiff purchased Simic from Salzburg for €2m in August 2024, immediately loaning him out to Belgian outfit KV Kortrijk.

A premature termination of the loan did enable Simic to make two Premier League Cup appearances for the Cardiff reserves in the current 2025 calendar year, but the Welsh side had no real use for him despite their relegation from the EFL Championship to League One. In the past, German clubs Hamburger SV and VfL Bochum have been linked with a move for him. 

Transfermarkt.de reports that the KSC have secured a purchase option as part of the deal. 

GGFN | Peter Weis

Wolfsburg are said to be interested in the Karlsruhe number one, with the plan to sign Weiß, then send him on loan next season. However, other clubs are interested in the 21-year-old. 

One of them is said to be Burnley. The newly promoted Premier League side’s idea is that Weiß will be their number two next season and will be given development opportunities. The Karlsruher goalkeeper is said to prefer this move to a move to Wolfsburg.

This season, Weiß was Karlsruhe’s number one after the departure of Patrick Drewes to Bochum last summer. The 21-year-old did not miss a single game for KSC last season as the club finished eighth in the 2.Bundesliga. 

It was previously reported by Sky Germany that Karlsruhe are planning to sell Weiß as they need the money. The asking price is said to be around €5m. 

GGFN | Jack Meenan 

Lautern remain in 7th place in the table, but are only one point below the promotion-relegation playoff spot contested by a tight field. The road ahead nevertheless remains anything but easy. Lieberknecht’s Pfälzer must now travel to regional rivals Karlsruher SC this weekend. Lautern haven’t won away at the Wildpark Stadion at this level in over 11 years. 

After a home fixture against Lieberknecht’s former club SV Darmstadt 98, Lautern must travel to the RheinEnergieStadion to face current 2. Bundesliga league leaders FC Köln. Lieberknecht commented on the forthcoming match in Baden at his Friday press conference. Speaking after last week’s victory, the coach drew some interesting historical parallels. 

“We’ll stoke the emotions, give clear instructions, and then let loose,” Lieberknecht said of the forthcoming fixture. “Everyone has performed so well this week that I am spoiled for choice when it comes to selecting the squad for the match. At this point in time, it’s good to know that we have all the guys on board.

“It’ll be a heated atmosphere at the Wildpark,” Lieberknecht continued. “And we want to play our part in that.“

Reflecting upon the road ahead last weekend, Lieberknecht couldn’t help but bring up an interesting piece of history. Back in 1991, Lautern secured their third league title on the season’s final matchday with a 2-6 away win at Köln. Lieberknecht would make his professional debut for FCK one year later.

“Kôln has already seen something truly magnificent for FC Kaiserslautern,” Lieberknecht said. “Why shouldn’t we talk about it and remember it?”

GGFN | Peter Weis