VfB Stuttgart has stopped its sporting descent in the Bundesliga. In the first game after the separation from coach Pellegrino Matarazzo there was a 4:1 (2:1) against VfL Bochum.
Under interim coach Michael Wimmer, the Swabians won the trend-setting duel against the bottom and left the relegation zone. Bochum suffered another setback after their liberation against Eintracht Frankfurt (3-0) last week.
After nine unsuccessful attempts, the passionate and by no means insecure VfB celebrated their first win of the season. After just three minutes, Silas Katompa Mvumpa's penalty had fans cheering in the stands of the Stuttgart Arena. Naouirou Ahamada extended the lead (22'). Simon Zoller shortened the lead for VfL (29') before Silas added his second goal (64'). Captain Wataru Endo (71st) made the decision.
Wimmer, who was committed to giving commands on the sidelines, had announced that he did not want to change everything. Matarazzo's longtime assistant stuck to the basic order. However, he had to make two changes because Serhou Guirassy and Atakan Karazor were suspended. In addition, Hiroki Ito initially only sat on the bench.
Despite the sense of achievement, Wimmer should only be a temporary solution. "None of the two candidates with whom we are still in talks have been made known. That's a good sign," said Stuttgart's CEO Alexander Wehrle before the game on TV broadcaster Sky and a decision in the coming days in prospect placed.
Stuttgart is looking for playful solutions
The question marks surrounding VfB didn't seem to paralyze the team. VfB were courageous from the start. Silas, who returned to play on the right, was brought down by Danilo Soares and converted the penalty that was due. Bochum's goalkeeper Manuel Riemann stormed out of his goal and tried to wake up those in front after the early shock. At least the intensity in the duels increased afterwards.
VfB, on the other hand, looked for playful solutions and were as active as in Matarazzo's last game. The difference to the 0-1 draw against 1. FC Union Berlin was that the hosts had luck on their side this time. After a long ball, Riemann misjudged running out. Silas played the ball again and Ahamada scored to make it 2-0.
The guests, with Kevin Stöger replacing Patrick Osterhage in midfield, remained toxic and also rewarded themselves. When a cross came in, VfB goalkeeper Florian Müller shot opponent Simon Zoller. With this goal, VfB set a new negative record. There has been at least one goal conceded in the past 27 home games.
This statistic was only a side note, however, since the Stuttgart team survived a pressure phase without damage and on the other side Silas and Endo set more pinpricks. Sentiment was dampened by the injury-related substitution of Konstantinos Mavropanos, who was transported on a stretcher.
