VfB Stuttgart – VfL Wolfsburg
In the Saturday conference on Matchday 7 of the Bundesliga, both BVB and RB Leipzig have home games. The top match, however, will take place in Swabia. There, two teams will meet that have experienced a start to the season that has made their fans’ hearts beat faster. Find out which team will continue to ride the wave of success after this match in our Stuttgart – Wolfsburg tip.
Before the start of the season, nobody would have thought that this match would be a real top game. Wolfsburg narrowly missed out on the European places in the pre-season under Niko Kovac, but have international business definitely on their radar this season. VfL are currently in seventh place, having won four of their first six games of the season.
The turnaround at VfB Stuttgart, however, is even more astonishing. In the pre-season, the Swabians only secured their place in the relegation. But this season, the Stuttgart team is playing like a real top team and is rightly in second place in the table. In the previous week, VfB also won a difficult away game in Cologne with 2:0.
Stuttgart – Wolfsburg Info:
- Date & Time: 07.10.2023, 15:30 Uhr
- Court: MHP-Arena, Stuttgart
- Competition: Bundesliga, Matchday 7
- TV broadcast: Sky
Stuttgart Form & Balance Check
Not many fans expected an outstanding start to the season for VfB Stuttgart after the Swabians fought against relegation to the 2. Bundesliga for a very long time in the pre-season. However, the men from the Neckar are currently proving all the sceptics wrong, as coach Sebastian Hoeneß’ team is greeting the visitors from second place in the table after six games.
Especially at home, VfB has been completely convincing so far. The three games against Bochum, Freiburg and Darmstadt were all won by Stuttgart, with a goal difference of 13:1. But the Swabians also played a strong game in Cologne last Saturday, and in the end deserved to win 2:0.
The Hoeneß Table
Since coach Sebastian Hoeneß took over at VfB Stuttgart on matchday 27 of pre-season, things have been going like clockwork for the Swabians. First of all, the new coach led VfB to the relegation play-off in the pre-season. In the Bundesliga table since the 41-year-old took office, Stuttgart even occupy fourth place.
In the 14 games under Hoeneß’ management, the Swabians have scored an extremely strong 28 points. Only the three absolute top teams from Leipzig, Munich and Dortmund still tower over VfB in this period. Hoeneß’ best finish in the Bundesliga to date was in the 2021/22 season, when he finished ninth with TSG Hoffenheim. Stuttgart fans would probably also be satisfied with this position at the end of the season.
Stuttgart facts & analysis
- Won 2:0 in Cologne the previous week
- In second place in the Bundesliga
- Third best offence in the Bundesliga
Wolfsburg form & balance check
VfL Wolfsburg struggled for a long time last season to qualify for international competitions, but fell just short of that goal. In the new season under the leadership of coach Niko Kovac, the Wolves are aiming to achieve an even better ranking in the Bundesliga. The start of the season was promising for the team from the Autostadt.
With nine points from the first four games, the Wolves had a perfect start to the season. A fortnight ago, however, the VfL suffered a setback in Dortmund with a narrow 0:1 defeat. The previous week, however, the Lower Saxons struck back impressively and gave Frankfurt Eintracht no chance in a 2:0 victory.
Wind just keeps going
The two goals against Frankfurt were once again scored by the man of the moment for the Wolves in the previous week. Jonas Wind is taking on an absolutely key role for VfL Wolfsburg this season. The Lower Saxons have registered nine goals so far, with the Dane playing a key role in eight of them, with seven goals and one assist. This puts the 24-year-old in third place in the Bundesliga’s list of goal scorers.
This achievement already sets his personal season record in the Bundesliga, as he scored six times in the previous 2022/23 season. And his personal record in his entire professional career also looks more than catchable for Wind this year. In the 2020/21 season, the attacker scored a total of eleven times for his hometown club Copenhagen in the Danish Superligaen.
Wolfsburg facts & analysis
- No draw yet this season.
- Won 2:0 against Frankfurt in the previous week
- In 7th place in the Bundesliga
Predicted line-up – last update on 6 October 2023
At VfB, the 4-2-3-1 will again be the system of choice. Atakan Karazor, who had to be substituted with an injury against Cologne, is expected to be available again for the Swabians at the weekend. Double goal scorer Deniz Undav will probably come off the bench again.
The Lower Saxons will also field a 4-2-3-1 again on Saturday. The VfL will again rely on the services of Jonas Wind in the centre of attack. In general, we do not expect any changes in the starting eleven compared to the 2-0 win against Frankfurt.
Stuttgart – Wolfsburg direct comparison & Statistics
The direct comparison between the two opponents goes to the Swabians by a razor-thin margin. VfB have won 24 of the 54 meetings so far. Wolfsburg, on the other hand, have only won 22 times against Stuttgart. In the pre-season, however, coach Kovac’s team won both games against the Swabians.
- Serhou Guirassy is the top scorer with 10 goals for VfB – Jonas Wind scored seven times for Wolfsburg.
- Stuttgart have not lost any of their last seven home games
- Stuttgart’s last home win against Wolfsburg was on 11.05.2019
