After reaching the final of the DFB Cup, VfB Stuttgart suffered a setback in the fight for their second goal of the season. It was only enough for a 1-1 (0-1) draw against Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga, but at least Ermedin Demirovic (61st minute) scored a point after Jens Stage took the lead (18th minute).
As a result, VfB returned to fourth place, which would mean qualification for the Champions League – but rivals TSG Hoffenheim (equal on points with 57 points) and Bayer Leverkusen (55) moved closer to the reigning cup winners on matchday 31. Next Saturday there will be a direct duel between Hoffenheim and Stuttgart in Sinsheim (3:30 p.m.), and a week later VfB will host Leverkusen in their own stadium.
Bremen with a strong start, Stage scores again
Werder was surprisingly the better and more attacking team from the start. And in the sixth minute, Senne Lynen had the first big chance, first his shot was blocked, then he had another free shot from twelve meters – but the Belgian impressively showed why he had never scored in 96 competitive games for Werder and shot over. Stage also failed a little later with his header (8th), but he did better again a little later.
With his tenth goal of the season, Stage gave the guests the lead in the 18th minute. After a back pass, the Bremen midfielder shot the ball flat into the far corner – the Dane had recently scored a brace against Hamburger SV (3-1) to win the northern derby. Once again, Stage put Werder on course for victory and thus very close to salvation. With another success, the eight-point lead to relegation place 16 would hardly be made up.
Stuttgart is getting better, but not really good either
However, after the 0-1 defeat, Stuttgart made this plan more difficult and shifted up a gear. However, Mio Backhaus prevented the equalizer with a strong reflex after a header from Bilal El Khannouss (22nd), but VfB was unable to make any further dangerous moves three days after reaching the DFB Cup final, and it wasn’t until stoppage time that things got tricky for Bremen again.
After cup winning scorer Tiago Tomas won the ball, Jamie Leweling finished from three meters, but unlike Tomas’s against SC Freiburg (2-1), his backheel trick was blocked by Amos Pieper (44th). Shortly before the half-time whistle, Deniz Undav also appeared for the first time, but his shot went just wide of the goal (45th + 1).
Demirovic shines as a joker
After the break, Stuttgart increased the pressure even more, but there was no move to the opponent’s goal. Coach Sebastian Hoeneß’s team had a lot of ball possession, but only a few dangerous moments. But that changed Demirovic, who only needed four minutes after being substituted on to prove his class as a center forward. After a cross from El Khannouss, the Bosnian asserted himself robustly and scored the equalizer with a header (61′).
Stuttgart took the momentum with them and continued to restrict Werder in defense – but a mistake by Maximilian Mittelstädt almost gave the guests the lead again. Stage, however, was unable to take advantage of the faux pas and no longer put any pressure on the ball, Alexander Nübel saved without any problems (71′). So for coach Daniel Thioune’s team it was still a matter of winning points.
Backhaus secures an important point for Werder
Backhaus held on to a free kick from Badredine Bouanani (82′). Otherwise, Bremen left nothing to be desired on defense; Demirovic had another header opportunity that Backhaus had no problems with (89′). However, Werder were unable to exploit the space for counterattacks, so the Stuttgart goal was no longer in danger.
But that was probably manageable for the Thioune team; with the away point in Stuttgart, Werder increased their lead over FC St. Pauli, who are currently 16th, to six points. Relegation could be finalized next Saturday at FC Augsburg (3:30 p.m.) if Bremen scores more points there than St. Pauli (against Mainz 05) and at least as many as VfL Wolfsburg (at SC Freiburg).
