VfB Stuttgart missed the urgently needed liberation in the relegation battle and remains in crisis.
Bruno Labbadia was soaking wet in the pouring rain. Again and again he desperately drove his helpless team forward – but nothing helped. The coach of VfB Stuttgart experienced the next bitter disappointment in the relegation battle of the Bundesliga. After the well-deserved 0:2 (0:0) against Werder Bremen, the crisis in Swabia is getting worse and worse, also under Labbadia.
The frustration was correspondingly great. “Of course we are disappointed, it was a bitter defeat,” said Labbadia at DAZN with a grim expression. It is now “important to keep calm and build the team”.
This is sorely needed. “We lost the decisive moments. We didn’t score enough goals with our chances, we could have played another 90 minutes and not scored. We have to work really hard on that,” complained defender Waldemar Anton.
After the successful entry into the quarter-finals of the cup, VfB should also turn around in the league – but it turned out very differently. The VfB, which fell back to the relegation place, remained without a win in the fourth league game under Labbadia. The pressure before the Baden-Württemberg derby at SC Freiburg is increasing.
VfB Stuttgart: Serhou Guirassy has to leave injured
Werder, on the other hand, ended their negative series against VfB at the seventh attempt and consolidated their secure place in midfield. In front of 48,000 spectators, Jens Stage ensured Bremen’s celebrated 1-0 lead in the 59th minute. Marvin Ducksch (77th) followed suit and secured the first victory in Stuttgart in ten years. “We had a bit of a problem at the beginning, we can be very happy with the 2-0 lead,” said preparer Niclas Füllkrug happily.
After the last-minute cup win in Paderborn (2-1), VfB started with a lot of self-confidence. After a few good chances for the hosts in the early stages, the momentum was quickly over. The Bremen team made the game more and more open and, above all, coldly exploited their few opportunities.
When the score was 1:0, the ball landed happily at Stage via Füllkrug. He didn’t hit the right target, but Florian Müller didn’t have a chance to defend himself in the VfB goal. When VfB pushed for an equalizer, Ducksch flicked the ball into the goal after a pass from Füllkrug. Labbadia spoke of “two Sunday shots. We then lacked the funds.”
In addition, VfB will probably have to do without striker Serhou Guirassy for some time. The 26-year-old striker injured his left adductor area and had to be substituted after just 25 minutes. “It’s not looking too good,” said Labbadia after the game. But you still have to wait for the MRI scan on Monday, “then we can say more”.
VfB Stuttgart – Werder Bremen: The data for the game
