Borussia Mönchengladbach ended the series of three competitive defeats in a row and beat VfB Stuttgart on Friday evening. Comebacker Hofmann set the course for victory early on.
Provided the early Gladbach leadership: Jonas Hofmann.
IMAGO/Beautiful Sports
Both coaches had to change due to illness, Elvedi was missing on the Gladbach side, VfB had to do without Ito and Zagadou. There were three changes in the starting line-up on both sides – both Daniel Farke and Michael Wimmer should be lucky with their decisions.
Farke relied on Hofmann from the start, who made his comeback after his shoulder injury – and put the Foals ahead after just four minutes: After a precise cross from Plea, Hofmann shot directly at the penalty spot and defeated Müller with a bounce. Stuttgart had to put up with the early deficit and seemed unsettled, Bensebaini had the chance to make it 2-0 after ten minutes – this time Müller saved.
Bundesliga – 13th matchday
In return, VfB signed up for the game: Tiago Tomas was unable to convert Guirassy’s header from a tight angle (11′). Things continued to heat up in both penalty areas, but after 15 minutes Anton went down after a scuffle with Bensebaini in the Stuttgart penalty area. The Gladbach hit the defender in the face, referee Dr. Matthias Jöllenbeck pulled out a yellow card and stuck to his decision even after studying video.
Tiago Tomas responds to Thuram
Gladbach was allowed to continue playing with eleven players – and combined after 25 minutes to make it 2-0: Plea pushed the outside of his foot perfectly through to Thuram, who completed the ice-cold goal in front of Müller. Stuttgart threatened to slip away from the game, but the Swabians got a foot in the door. Tiago Tomas, who Wimmer replaced Silas in the starting XI, put his heel through Friedrich in an outstanding manner in the penalty area and followed up with a precise shot into the right corner – only 1:2 from Stuttgart’s point of view (35th).
The two defensive lines, which looked like holes, were to hold their ground until the break – after the restart, both Gladbach and VfB improved on the defensive. The foals continued to have the better playing system, often combining nicely up to the penalty area. The fact that Müller only had to intervene when Koné shot (47th) showed that Gladbach played too imprecisely in the last third. Stuttgart, on the other hand, relied on the counterattack and became dangerous through Ahamada (50th) and Führich (53rd).
Sippel saves against Guirassy – Herrmann with the final point
However, these were the only decisive conclusions until well into the final phase, the second round could not keep up with the level of the first half. Despite being just a little behind, VfB didn’t get enough after the restart, Gladbach seemed dominant without shining – but still allowed a big chance: After a cross from Tiago Tomas, Guirassy appeared free in the five, but the attacker failed at Sippel from close range (83rd).
VfB then threw everything forward, but were not rewarded for it and even conceded their third goal in the final action of the game: Herrmann, who had been substituted on shortly before, shot coldly into the bottom left corner (90+4). Gladbach’s negative run was thus over, while VfB also remained without a win in their 16 away game in a row.
For both teams, things are moving on in quick succession: Borussia Mönchengladbach is a guest at VfL Bochum on Tuesday from 8.30 p.m., while VfB Stuttgart host Hertha BSC at the same time.
