Werder Bremen vs VfB Stuttgart preview: Contenders or pretenders? | OneFootball

Werder Bremen

It feels like things have gone dark at Werder Bremen quite quickly. 

They were feeling pretty good about life going into the end of November, in the midst of a five-match unbeaten run that included three consecutive home victories. Since then, though, Werder has been dealt some pretty bad breaks.

First was a trip to RB Leipzig and former manager Ole Werner. The performance wasn’t too bad, but they still ended up losing 2-0 on the day. Bremen returned home the following week, and they were moments away from clinching yet another victory until a deflected goal from the opposition in stoppage time.

It all came to a head last weekend. Die Werderaner took on their bitter rivals Hamburg in the first Bundesliga Nordderby in what felt like ages. They took the lead against the run of play to end the first half, but it all unraveled after the break. Some poor defending coupled with an awful showing from the referee led to three goals conceded before full-time, ultimately setting up a very frustrating 3-2 defeat.

For the first time in his short Bremen tenure, new boss Horst Steffen is under real criticism from supporters. His starting lineup has been questioned, especially since he hasn’t made any changes to it in weeks. Then, when the game is going, fans feel like he’s taking way too long to make the needed adjustments. 

Star summer signing Samuel Mbangula has been reduced to short cameos off the bench. While injury issues play a part, he’s been publicly called out by Steffen due to an apparent lack of effort on the field. It’s a very similar story for Victor Boniface, who has not found any real form since a deadline day loan deal.

Something has to change for Werder, and fast. They aren’t playing too badly, but they’re not close to the levels they’ve hit in recent seasons. The team struggles moving the ball up the pitch, and their passing accuracy is woeful in the most important moments. They’re unable to create chances consistently, and the goals they do score come in quick moments via unusual means, mainly center midfielder Jens Stage. 

These next two games, versus Stuttgart and then away to Augsburg, are going to be critical. Failing to win either will not only sink Bremen in the Bundesliga standings, but it will send supporters into a real state of panic. It’ll be too soon to push for Steffen’s firing, but there will be doubts on if he is the right man for the job.

A big-time performance from Werder here, though, would go a long way in calming the nerves of many in green and white.

Team news

The trio of injured Bremen fullbacks remain as Maximilian Wöber, Felix Agu, and Mitchell Weiser are still out, while striker Victor Boniface is unavailable due to a knee issue.

Predicted lineups

Backhaus, Sugawara, Pieper, Friedl, Deman, Lynen, Stage, Grüll, Schmid, Mbangula, Njinmah

Stuttgart

For Stuttgart, the last few weeks have showcased their inconsistencies.

Their recent results are either really solid or pretty concerning depending on the competition you’re looking at. In the league, VfB have not won a game in over a month. They conceded a stoppage-time loser to Hamburg despite being up a man, and then they gave up five goals at home against Bayern Munich.

In other tournaments, Stuttgart are doing better. They just defeated Maccabi Tel Aviv in the Europa League on Thursday night, putting four past the opposition. That result put them in 9th in that table, only one point behind the eight automatic round of 16 qualifiers. They also booked a spot in the quarterfinals of the DFB Pokal after beating VfL Bochum.

These showings are promising for Die Schwaben, but if they want to reach the levels they had before, they’ll have to start putting wins together. They sit in 6th, and they are just a single point from the top four. There’s so much talent in the squad that could be maximized. 

Their squad depth will be tested once again since they are in three competitions at once. Stuttgart played only a few nights ago, but they did rotate the squad somewhat already. A few talents on that occasion might have put in a good word for themselves, so manager Sebastian Hoeneß will have a tough decision or two ahead of him. 

At the very least they’ll have plenty of time to rest during the winter break, so might as well push through these last few weeks. 

Team news

Stuttgart will need that time off due to their injury crisis. The likes of Justin Diehl, Dan-Axel Zagadou, Luca Jaquez, Noah Darvich, Yannik Keitel, and Ermedin Demirovic are all unavailable, while Lorenz Assignon is also suspended. 

Predicted lineups

Nubel, Vagnoman, Al Dakhil, Hendriks, Mittelstaedt, Karazor, Stiller, Nartey, El Khannouss, Führich, Undav