VfB Stuttgart has recently delighted fans and those in charge with convincing performances in the Bundesliga. And that doesn’t just have something to do with goalgetter Serhou Guirassy.
There are times of the year when the clock ticks differently in Stuttgart – when Wasen is in Cannstatt, or when VfB Stuttgart plays football as if there was a folk festival on the pitch. These days both events coincide on the Neckar.
In the first weeks of this Bundesliga season, VfB is not only playing beautiful but also extremely successful football, climbed after the Victory against Darmstadt 98 On Friday evening they even temporarily moved to the top of the table. For coach Sebastian Hoeneß, the latter was only a minor issue after the final whistle. “We’re welcome to talk about it, but that doesn’t do anything for me at all,” said the coach in an interview with SWR Sport.
Neon signs and goosebumps
It’s different with the Swabians’ fans. On the way back from either the stadium or the beer tent, depending on their route home, they were able to see the success again in white and black. Because on the disused gas boiler in the east of Stuttgart was emblazoned in large, bright letters: “We congratulate you on leading the table.” We, in this case, was a regional beer brand that combined the congratulations with advertising. The fans probably didn’t care.
Somewhere between a cold drink and a neon sign, they were busy with the man who is currently making the difference for the people of Stuttgart: Serhou Guirassy. The goalgetter shone against the lilies with a bouquet of well-known talents, i.e. scoring goals, and new qualities. Guirassy acted as an assist, provided Enzo Millot with his first assist in the Bundesliga to make it 2-1 (22nd minute) and, after his own goal to equalize, ensured that VfB was able to turn the game around.
More than Guirassy
“Guirassy scores because Guirassy knows he is Guirassy,” summed up a VfB fan after the final whistle. The analysis – as accurate as it is brief, and therefore not enough for VfB coach Hoeneß. He sees Guirassy’s special development as more than just goals and league leadership. “He has shown that he is a team player and also that he realizes in difficult phases that he has to invest and work against the ball. The overall package is enormously good for us, but also for him.”
The fact that VfB gives its fans this light, almost queasy, but at the same time nice feeling that eventually appears in the stomach area after three rounds of the chain carousel is not just due to Guirassy. He brings that lightness onto the pitch, into VfB’s game, but coach Hoeneß ensures the balance.
Collective and momentum at VfB
In interviews and conversations, he always reminds us that Guirassy should stay on the ground – despite his goal record at the start of the season – and doesn’t forget to praise the collective. That hasn’t always been the case at VfB in recent years and that’s perhaps why it has an even stronger effect now. Players like Millot, who would probably be the difference-maker for many other Bundesliga teams, or Pascal Stenzel, who was involved in all three Stuttgart goals on Friday evening, who acts more courageously thanks to the support of Hoeneß, is allowed to make mistakes and thus becomes an important factor in the game who has become a Swabian.
And then, in addition to the mixture of individual quality and the Stuttgart collective, there is something else: “If you are on a roll as a team, then it is definitely the case that you then get the decisive moments on your side,” said Hoeneß. There are currently more than one of these moments in Stuttgart and perhaps that is one reason why the clocks on the Neckar are ticking a little differently these days.
