Stuttgart (dpa) – floodlights – and for the first time in more than two years a full house in Stuttgart. VfB opens the sixth-to-last matchday of the season against Borussia Dortmund this Friday evening (8.30 p.m. / DAZN).
In view of the number of goals both clubs conceded, the expected 60,000 spectators in the sold-out arena can expect a spectacle. BVB have already conceded 42 goals in the previous 28 matchdays – and that as second in the table. With the Stuttgarters there were even nine more. Nevertheless, the situation at VfB, which wants to prevent the third relegation in six years from the Bundesliga, is currently calmer than with the guests from the Ruhr area.
The situation:
In terms of sport, the season was more or less over for BVB. In the cup competitions it was over early. In the league there is hardly a chance of winning the championship, but there is also little risk of missing out on qualifying for the Champions League. For Dortmund, the main thing in the final sprint should be to get back the fans’ lost credit – especially after the recent 1: 4 swatter in the prestige duel with RB Leipzig. VfB is still in acute danger of relegation and is only one point ahead of relegation rank 16. Recently, however, Stuttgart have shown an upward trend and got eight points from four games.
The staff:
Goal scorer Sasa Kalajdzic is missing from VfB because of another corona infection and defense chief Waldemar Anton because of a yellow card suspension. Left-back Borna Sosa, who is notorious for his crosses, is likely to start again after a short injury break. No major changes are expected at Dortmund compared to the previous week.
The trainers:
“The disappointment was very big. A lot is pouring down on us. On Friday we have the chance to put that into perspective and steer it in a different direction,” said BVB coach Marco Rose looking back on the pack against Leipzig. “I’m really keen on being on the sidelines and having a good fight with the boys,” emphasized Stuttgart’s Pellegrino Matarazzo. “We know that if we push ourselves to the limit, we’re also able to annoy bigger opponents.”