Football Season Guide

Bundesliga

Germany

Bundesliga

2020/2021

VFB Stuttgart

In

Waldemar Anton (def) Stuttgart; Gregor Kobel (gk) Hoffenheim; Wataru Endo (mid) Sint-Truidence; Pascal Stenzel (def) SC Freiburg; Konstantinos Mavrapanos (def) Arsenal – on loan; Momo Cisse (att) Le Havre B; Pablo Maffeo (def) Girona – end of loan; Ailton (def) Quarabag Agdam – end of loan; Erik Thommy (mid) Fortuna Dusseldorf – end of loan;

Out

Anastasios Donis (att) Reims; Chadrac Akolo (mid) Aimens SC; David Kopacz (mid) Wurzburger Kickers; Nikolas Nartey (mid) SV Sandhausen – on loan; Mario Gomez (r) (att) retired; Nathaniel Phillips (r) (def) Liverpool – end of loan;

Stuttgart didn’t have it all their own way last season but eventually did enough to gain promotion back to the top flight. A change of manager halfway through the campaign helped them push on after a slump and they showed real quality in attacking areas. Coach Pellegrino Matarazzo has recognised the areas that need improvement during the transfer window, he has brought in defenders Waldemar Anton from Hannover and Konstantinos Mavrapanos on loan from Arsenal. Defensively they were weak last season and this will help to address that. Another plus for the Swabians is the permanent deals for right-back Pascal Stenzel and midfielder Wataru Endo, who both impressed on loan last season. Striker Mario Gomez has hung up his boots but they still have plenty of talent going forward, wingers Silas Wamangutika and Nicolas Gonzalez will provide pace on the flanks, while the creativity of Daniel Didavi could be key to unlocking defences.

Target

Mid-table - Stuttgart certainly have the credentials to hold their own in this division and will look to avoid getting dragged into any relegation trouble. They have recruited well and kept their key men, so this should help their chances of consolidation. They will need to be resilient defensively and a good start to the campaign will also boost confidence.