User:Huligan0/2015–16 FC Basel season

The 2015–16 FC Basel season is the 123rd season in club history and the club's 21st consecutive season in the top flight of Swiss football. Basel are the reigning Swiss Super League champions. They prepared their season with various warm-up matches against teams from Ukraine, Germany and Netherlands. Their 2015–16 Swiss Super League season begins on 19 July with a home game against Vaduz. Basel are qualified to the 2015–16 Champions League in the Third qualifying round. The draw for the third qualifying round will be held on 17 July 2015. The first legs will be played on 28 and 29 July, and the second legs will be played on 4 and 5 August 2015. In the first round of the 2015–16 Swiss Cup, which will be played on 15 August 2015, Basel were drawn away against Meyrin FC.

Management
On 18 June 2015 Basel announced that Urs Fischer had signed a three-year contract. His assistants are Marco Walker and Markus Hoffmann. Massimo Colomba remained the Goalkeeper coach. Massimo Ceccaroni is head of the FCB Youth System. Coach of the Youth Team (U–21) is Thomas Häberli.

Offseason and preseason
At the end of the 2014–15 FC Basel season four first team players left the club to continue their careers elsewhere. These were Fabian Schär to 1899 Hoffenheim, Fabian Frei to 1. FSV Mainz 05, Giovanni Sio to Stade Rennais and Arlind Ajeti. Also no longer in the team for this season was Marco Streller who ended his football career. Basel's biggest signings for the beginning of the new season were Daniel Høegh from Odense Boldklub, Zdravko Kuzmanović from Inter Milan, Michael Lang from Grasshopper Club Zürich and Marc Janko who came in on a free transfer from Sydney FC. Also new in the team are Manuel Akanji, who transferred in from FC Winterthur, and Mirko Salvi who returned from his one year loan to FC Biel-Bienne.

Domestic League
Basel's priority aim for the season is to win the league championship for the seventh time in a row.

Domestic Cup
Basel's clear aim for the 2015–16 Swiss Cup is to regain the title that they last won four seasons ago. In the previous three seasons they had ended the cup competitions as runners-up, in 2013 against Grasshopper Club Zürich, in 2014 against Zürich and the previous season 2015 against Sion. In the first round of this seasons competition, which is to be played on 15 August 2015, Basel are drawn away against Meyrin FC.

Champions League
Basel enter into this seasons Champions League in the Third qualifying round. Their initial aim is to remain in the competition and reach the group stage.

First team squad
The following is the list of the Basel first team squad. It also includes players that were in the squad the day the season started on 18 July but subsequently left the club after that date.

Results and Fixtures
Kickoff times are in CET

UEFA Champions League
The draw for the third qualifying round will be held on 17 July 2015. The first legs will be played on 28 and 29 July, and the second legs will be played on 4 and 5 August 2015.