Stand: 20.08.2021
RB Leipzig sets an exclamation mark after the surprising opening defeat in Mainz. Against VfB Stuttgart, the team clearly underlined that it is a candidate for the title. In particular, the long-injured Szoboszlai’s starting XI debut raises high hopes.
Dhe Leipzig professionals were celebrated extensively by their fans. And the over 20,000 spectators had good reason to cheer: Vice-champion RB Leipzig is playing like a title contender again. Five days after the very weak start to the season in Mainz, the team headed by the new coach Jesse Marsch won 4-0 (1-0) against VfB Stuttgart, who had come as the championship leader.
The outstanding Dominik Szoboszlai (38th and 52nd minute) in his starting eleven debut, Emil Forsberg (46th) and André Silva (65th / penalty) scored for the strong and aggressive Leipzigers, who meanwhile made VfB in its half.
“You can’t have a better debut in front of the fans,” said Szoboszlai, who was recently injured for a long time, at DAZN. “I’ve seen a lot, it wasn’t easy. I am very happy that we can have fans again and that I was able to score two goals. Today was perfect. We reacted very, very well to the game against Mainz. “
The Swabians, trained by Pellegrino Matarazzo, lost their top position in the Bundesliga just by conceding goals. “We were shown our limits,” said Matarazzo.
Dominik Szoboszlai can be celebrated after his first goal, with which he paved the Leipzig victory
Quelle: Getty Images/Martin Rose
In the first Bundesliga duel between two US coaches, Leipzig clearly determined the first half. Marsch had changed his team to three positions compared to the 0: 1 at FSV Mainz 05. The captain Marcel Sabitzer, who is associated with FC Bayern, only sat on the bench until the 68th minute. Cheered on by the 23,100 fans in the Leipzig Arena, RB played extremely offensively – Forsberg fired the first shot, which VfB goalkeeper Florian Müller parried (5th).
“We are ready for a great performance”, Marsch had said before the game against his compatriot Matarazzo, whom he had once faced as a player in a game in the USA. VfB acted – also forced by the dominant RB game – much more cautiously than in the furious 5: 1 against SpVgg Greuther Fürth at the beginning. Hamadi Al Ghaddioui checked RB goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi (10th).
There were hardly any relief attacks in Stuttgart
The Leipzig pressing worked perfectly, especially Forsberg and Szoboszlai caused enormous unrest on the Swabian defensive. Müller had to stretch quite a bit with a deflected cross from Christopher Nkunku to prevent the 0: 1 at this earlier point in time (15th). Marsch and Matarazzo both stood again and again on the edge of their coaching zones and tried to influence the game. Marsch was able to marvel at a sideways puller of his newcomer Silva in the 23rd minute, but Müller defused.
The VfB keeper got a lot more to do than the Stuttgarters could have liked. Only a few relief attacks led to dangerous actions in the Leipzig penalty area. Al Ghaddioui had a great chance to take the lead in the first half. The replacement of Sasa Kalajdzic, who was still sitting on the bench up to the 73rd minute after a corona infection, did not get enough pressure behind the ball (33rd).
Apart from that, VfB, who had already suffered five defeats in the previous six Bundesliga games against RB, let themselves be pushed into their own half. Szoboszlai rewarded the courageous Leipzig follow-up after a Stuttgart playback error with his goal with a full shot from the edge of the penalty area. The lead was absolutely deserved with 16: 4 shots on goal in the first half – and even more reassuring after 15 seconds of the second round.
Stuttgart goalkeeper Müller reacted upset after the game. “What annoys me extremely: We go into halftime, take something before and after 15 seconds a goal is scored. That can’t be the case, ”he said.
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Right from the start, the people of Leipzig played their way past the guests, Forsberg kept his nerve after being presented by Silva in front of Müller from a short distance. The fans celebrated their professionals and cheered even louder after Szoboszlai’s feat. The Hungarian wanted to play his free kick as a sharp cross into the penalty area, but the ball, kicked very hard, sailed past everyone into Müller’s goal.
Florian Badstübner’s penalty whistle after a handball by Marc-Oliver Kempf in his 100th Bundesliga game initiated the next goal. Silva scored his debut goal in the RB jersey. By now the game was decided, after which RB took the pace a little out of the game. While Leipzig’s trainer Marsch attested his team was “aggressive, intense, won a lot of balls and good game play”, Stuttgart defender Borna Sosa admitted: “We weren’t well prepared in our heads for such a strong opponent.”
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