Bulinews Player of the Season Awards: VfB Stuttgart's Player of the Season | OneFootball

VfB Stuttgart endured a bit of a tricky campaign overall as they balanced Bundesliga action alongside a return to the UEFA Champions League. While their domestic league form suffered and some summer signings didn’t quite gel as hoped, credit has to be given to Sebastian Hoeneß and his squad for their top-half finish and achieving DfB Pokal final glory. Perhaps priorities lay elsewhere.

Still, looking back on the season it goes without saying that the Swabians pulled off one of the transfer coups of the year in Nick Woltemade. The 6’5’’ or 194cm giant arrived on a free deal from Werder Bremen with little to no talk of being a noteworthy talent. It appeared like a signing made to provide squad depth. How wrong we were.

First appearance might make one think awkward, uncoordinated and unathletic. Yet, the 23-year-old wowed fans at the MHP Arena all season with his dazzling footwork, close control and unpredictable bursts of pace. It took until Matchday 10 for the German to become a key component of Hoeneß’ side, beyond which he netted 12 goals and supplied 2 assists in 28 matches.

STANDOUT PERFORMANCE:

Woltemade made the highlight reels on more than a few occasions each weekend, but his Matchday 13 cameo off the bench in Stuttgart’s 3-2 win over Union Berlin stood out most. Danilo Doekhi and Rani Khedira gave the visitors a two-goal lead either side of the break at which point Hoeness called upon the 23-year-old.

With his first involvement, Woltemade drifted in behind to collect Demirovic’s pass. One touch took it out of his feet to round Ronnow and blast it into the roof of the net. Just before the hour, Woltemade made the run for Atakan Karazor to find him. Once again, the touch was crisp and the outside-of-the-boot finish delightful. Although Karazor completed the comeback later on, none of it was possible or even imaginable without Woltemade’s contribution.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS:

Maximilian Mittelstädt continues to go from strength to strength under Hoeness with another fine season in which he manned the left flank and contributed with a goal alongside his 7 assists to earn him a pair of votes. The German international also emerged as the league’s top crosser with 109 in total. Meanwhile, Angelo Stiller secured a vote as he continues to develop into one of the Bundesrepublik’s finest midfielders as his 90.24% pass accuracy left him fourteenth highest for the season.