SV Werder and VfB Stuttgart have one thing in common – they both have eleven points from nine games. At 15:30 CET on Sunday, the green-and-whites welcome the newly-promoted side to the wohninvest WESERSTADION for Bundesliga matchday ten. “Everyone watching on TV can hope for an attractive game played at a high tempo,” said Florian Kohfeldt at his press conference on Friday as he previewed the clash between the two sides.
Team news: After the match away in Wolfsburg, Jean-Manuel Mbom (exceeded yellow card limit) and Kevin Möhwald (red card in previous match) are unavailable for the meeting with Stuttgart. Milot Rashica picked up an injury in training on Tuesday and will be out for the foreseeable future. “It’s really tough for him and a real blow for us. He will be good to go again at the end of January – he’s mentally very strong and he will come back from this,” said Kohfeldt. Josh Sargent has overcome his ankle injury and will return to the squad this weekend but Werder will have to remain patient with Niclas Füllkrug. “Unfortunately his injured calf has reacted to the work he’s done,” said Kohfeldt on Friday. In a best case scenario, Füllkrug would be back in time for the game against Mainz in two weeks. Milos Veljkovic is another who won’t feature against Stuttgart, although he should be available for next week’s match against Leipzig.
The head coach on the match: So far this season, VfB Stuttgart have shown that they are not your typical newly-promoted team. “They have an exciting approach to the game – they play out from the back with a lot of courage, they have pace on the wings and they sometimes choose really bold formations,” said Werder head coach Florian Kohfeldt as he evaluated the performances of Pellegrino Matarazzo’s side. The influence of the VfB boss is clear to see in his team. Kohfeldt sees parallels between SVW and VfB not only in the season so far, but also how the two sides play. “Both teams have eleven points, have played similar opponents and have conceded the same number of goals.” With that in mind, Kohfeldt is expecting an exciting match with plenty of attacking intent from both teams. The 38-year-old has seen his side make a big step forward with their play in recent weeks. “Despite the setbacks we always have the expectation to win at home. I see this as a good opportunity to do that,” said Kohfeldt optimistically. “Everybody knows that there is some pressure on the Stuttgart match now. We will be active and aggressive.”
The last meeting between the sides: Because VfB Stuttgart were playing in the second tier last season, it’s been a little while since the two teams met in a Bundesliga fixture. On 22.02.2019, the points were shared in a 1-1 draw at the wohninvest WESERSTADION. After Stuttgart took the lead in the second minute through Steven Zuber, Davy Klaassen evened things up shortly before half-time. Neither of the two goal-scorers will be playing on Sunday as both have since changed clubs.
Good omens: SV Werder are unbeaten at home against Stuttgart in more than fourteen years, which speaks for the green-and-whites’ strong record in the fixture. Since losing 3-2 to the eventual champions in September 2006, there have been six Werder wins and five draws on home soil. In a total of 104 meetings with the side from Baden-Württemberg, there have been 36 wins for VfB, one victory more than Werder have achieved. The points were shared on 33 occasions.
Head-to-head: Looking at the Bundesliga table, Sunday’s match is a direct clash between 10th and 11th place, with both teams level on eleven points. Matchday ten will therefore decide which club moves into the upper reaches of the table. Both sides will be hoping to pick up three points for the first time in a while. Bremen’s run of draws ended last time out with a 5-3 loss to Wolfsburg, meaning that Kohfeldt’s side are now without a win in six matches. Stuttgart lost at home to Bayern Munich last weekend (3-1) and are winless in five games with four draws and one defeat.
