Ingolstadt's stay in the Bundesliga proved to be a brief one as they were not able to avoid being relegated back to the 2.Bundesliga despite putting up a brave fight throughout the campaign. Having lost their coach Ralph Hasenhuttl to RB Leipzig, Ingolstadt were always going to find it difficult in their second season in the Bundesliga. The season got off to a poor start under Markus Kauczinski with Ingolstadt just about managing to avoid an upset in the DFB Cup as they beat Erzgebirge Aue following a penalty shootout and, while they did put up good displays in their draws against Hamburger SV and Borussia Dortmund, those proved to be the only time Ingolstadt managed to avoid a defeat in their opening 10 games. A disappointing defeat to Augsburg proved to be the last straw for the club who relieved Kauczinski off his job and appointed Maik Walpurgis as his replacement. While it was another gamble by Ingolstadt, it looked to be working in the initial weeks as the club hit a good patch of form and collected 10 points from Walpurgis' opening five games in charge.
Performances had improved for Ingolstadt but the winter break came at the wrong time for the club who struggled to regain their form and they could only manage to win just two more times until the end of March. Three straight victories over fellow relegation strugglers Mainz, Augsburg and Darmstadt increased hopes of survival but a six-match winless run at the end of the campaign meant that Ingolstadt were not able to close the gap to safety and finished five points adrift of 15th placed Mainz. Ingolstadt will be heading into the new season as one of the favorites for promotion, provided they are able to hold on to their key players. While Ingolstadt did miss the services of a regular goal scorer, Marcus Suttner, Almog Cohen and Pascal Gross put up consistent displays for their side with the fullback chipping in with four goals and five assists. With Gross, Mathew Leckie and Roger all leaving the club over the summer, Walpurgis will be hopeful that he can avoid a big turnover of players as he looks for an immediate return to the Bundesliga.
