With a 3' own goal, you wouldn't give us much of a chance. I'm not sure if Mavropanos has a right to expect Müller to be between the sticks, but why wasn't he? Paderborn missed a couple of golden opportunities after that, and as chance would have it, they finally paid the price. 3 minutes after coming on, Gil Dias scores on his debut with a beautiful shot from the edge of the box. Then, in the 95th minute, Guirassy scores from a corner. It doesn't improve our standing, and a place in the Quarter finals isn't likely to amount to much, but for a new coach and a struggling squad, this could be a welcome morale boost... if we overlook 2nd Tier competition and near-misses.
I'd say VfB was lucky to win this one. I think my preference was for them to blow off the Pokal and concentrate on staying up, but hopefully they'll draw inspiration from this which will carry over to the league.
I didn't realize VfB had a midweek Pokal match until after the fact. I don't know what to make of it. They beat a 2.B squad who currently sit 5th in the table so that is encouraging for when and if they get relegated down to that level again. But then again, barely beating Paderborn doesn't inspire any confidence that they can remain in 1.B. If VfB do get relegated, I don't expect that Mavropanos, Endo, and few others (especially the loanees) will follow them down.
It appears that Silas Katompa Mvumpa's legal situation is finally resolved. This is a translated article from the Stuttgarter Nachrichten:
Week 19: 3-7-9 16 points Lost 0-2 at home to Bremen. Now in 16th, 3 points behind Bochum, and only 2 ahead of Hertha Berlin in 17th. If they can hang here, they will go into relegation/promotion playoff against #3 of 2.B at end of season. Not sure they can hang here, however; it requires getting a few points now and then. And that requires scoring a goal or two. Goals-Assists Guirassy 6 - 0 Silas 3 - 2 Sosa 0 - 5 Endo 3 - 1 Tomas 2 - 2 Ahamada 2 - 2 Führich 3 - 0 Mavropanos 2 - 1 Anton 1 - 0 Ito 0 - 1 Stenzel 0 - 1 Kalajdzic 0 - 3 - gone to Wolverhampton and picked up season-ending ACL injury in first match Goals scored: 22 Goals conceded: 34 Clean sheets: 1
Week 20: 3-7-10 16 points Away loss at Freiburg, 2-1. I tuned in time to see Fuhrich hit a beauty from distance, 0-1, assist from Sosa. And then VAR took over. VAR gave Freiburg a PK when the onfield ref considered it a 50:50 challenge. And then later, another PK for Freiburg. This is not VfB's season. Goals-Assists Guirassy 6 - 0 Silas 3 - 2 Sosa 0 - 6 Führich 4 - 0 Endo 3 - 1 Tomas 2 - 2 Ahamada 2 - 2 Mavropanos 2 - 1 Anton 1 - 0 Ito 0 - 1 Stenzel 0 - 1 Kalajdzic 0 - 3 - gone to Wolverhampton and picked up season-ending ACL injury in first match Goals scored: 23 Goals conceded: 36 Clean sheets: 1
Here's a link to an article from Vertikalpass that has been translated: https://vertikalpass-de.translate.g...l=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp
GLORY HALLELUJAH! VfB finally won a match, and in convincing fashion, 3-0! Goals by Dias (9'), Sosa (59'), and Coulibaly (74') https://www.espn.com/core/video/iframe?id=4880640&endcard=false
I was busy this morning so didn't watch it live, but yeah, finally a win and a convincing one at that. Hariguchi looks like a good acquisition and has plenty of 1.B experience. Match was fun to watch after so many disappointing outcomes.
Week 21: 4-7-10 19 points A very nice 3-0 win at home against a Koln side that had been flying high. Gil Dilas played a 1-2 with Hariguchi and slotted in off the left post for the 1-0. And then Borna Sosa hit a free kick over the wall and into the upper right corner and off the underside of the bar, 2-0. Final goal was when Endo sent Coulibaly in free along the right side and he shot high into the net with a slight deflection off defender's leg. And, wow, only the second clean sheet of the season, kept by GK Bredlow. VfB are now in 14th, ahead of Hoffenheim and Bochum on same points but slightly better goal differential. Goals-Assists Sosa 1 - 6 Guirassy 6 - 0 Silas 3 - 2 Endo 3 - 2 Führich 4 - 0 Tomas 2 - 2 Ahamada 2 - 2 Mavropanos 2 - 1 Dilas 1 - 0 Coulibaly 1 - 0 Anton 1 - 0 Hariguchi 0 - 1 Ito 0 - 1 Stenzel 0 - 1 Kalajdzic 0 - 3 - gone to Wolverhampton and picked up season-ending ACL injury in first match Goals scored: 26 Goals conceded: 36 Clean sheets: 2
Week 22: 4-7-11 19 points Yes, we would think that VfB could at least beat the bottom of the table side Schalke, but NO, go down in a 2-1 away defeat. Sosa with a goal from a Karazor assist. Borna is showing off for his summer transfer, you realise. Goals-Assists Sosa 2 - 6 Guirassy 6 - 0 Silas 3 - 2 Endo 3 - 2 Führich 4 - 0 Tomas 2 - 2 Ahamada 2 - 2 Mavropanos 2 - 1 Dilas 1 - 0 Coulibaly 1 - 0 Anton 1 - 0 Karazor 0 - 1 Hariguchi 0 - 1 Ito 0 - 1 Stenzel 0 - 1 Kalajdzic 0 - 3 - gone to Wolverhampton and picked up season-ending ACL injury in first match Goals scored: 27 Goals conceded: 38 Clean sheets: 2
Week 24: 4-8-12 20 points Week 23: VfB 1-2 Bayern Munich, Perea goal (Tomas assist) Week 24: Eintracht Frankfurt 1-1 VfB, Silas goal (Haraguchi assist) Still in the relegation zone. Bochum got out of the basement with a win. Wish VfB could do the same. Goals-AssistsgSosa 2 - 6 Guirassy 6 - 0 Silas 4 - 2 Endo 3 - 2 Tomas 2 - 3 Führich 4 - 0 Ahamada 2 - 2 Mavropanos 2 - 1 Hariguchi 0 - 2 Dilas 1 - 0 Coulibaly 1 - 0 Anton 1 - 0 Perea 1 - 0 Karazor 0 - 1 Ito 0 - 1 Stenzel 0 - 1 Kalajdzic 0 - 3 - gone to Wolverhampton and picked up season-ending ACL injury in first match Goals scored: 29 Goals conceded: 41 Clean sheets: 2
...and now we're bottom of the table. Not the worst GD, so hopefully we're not the worst team. One win could make the difference, but the last 9 matches do not look very favorable.
Yup, bottom of the table. VfB are going to be relegated straight away, no doubt. Week 25: 4-8-13 20 points VfB Stuttgart 0-1 Wolfsburg Goals-Assists Sosa 2 - 6 Guirassy 6 - 0 Silas 4 - 2 Endo 3 - 2 Tomas 2 - 3 Führich 4 - 0 Ahamada 2 - 2 Mavropanos 2 - 1 Hariguchi 0 - 2 Dilas 1 - 0 Coulibaly 1 - 0 Anton 1 - 0 Perea 1 - 0 Karazor 0 - 1 Ito 0 - 1 Stenzel 0 - 1 Kalajdzic 0 - 3 - gone to Wolverhampton and picked up season-ending ACL injury in first match Goals scored: 29 Goals conceded: 42 Clean sheets: 2
When they lose the Canstatter Kurve, they're on thin ice: Kipppunkt. #VfB pic.twitter.com/jxcO1PDaPl— Bruddelei (@bruddelei) March 18, 2023
That's a stark contrast with stadium construction in the background. They are building for the future, but they forgot to build a squad that can stay out of the relegation zone.
Week 26: 4-8-14 20 points Union Berlin 3-0 VfB Stuttgart Updating is easy when there are no goals. Goals-Assists Sosa 2 - 6 Guirassy 6 - 0 Silas 4 - 2 Endo 3 - 2 Tomas 2 - 3 Führich 4 - 0 Ahamada 2 - 2 Mavropanos 2 - 1 Hariguchi 0 - 2 Dilas 1 - 0 Coulibaly 1 - 0 Anton 1 - 0 Perea 1 - 0 Karazor 0 - 1 Ito 0 - 1 Stenzel 0 - 1 Kalajdzic 0 - 3 - gone to Wolverhampton and picked up season-ending ACL injury in first match Goals scored: 29 Goals conceded: 45 Clean sheets: 2
I admire your patience and resolve in filing these reports. I just get more depressed every time I see another loss.
Dead last, and now Labbadia is out. Can this team survive another season in the Bundesliga? The answer is clearly, no.
Labbadia is out? I guess that's a good thing because we didn't even get the "new-coach bounce" from his hiring. Now the idiots who hired him, have the team in a worse spot than before they hired him: not only was he not the right coach for the job, but he's due 5 years of severance IIRC!