PLAYER RATINGS | VfB Stuttgart 1-3 Bayern Munich | OneFootball

Bayern Munich took a massive step towards the Bundesliga title, beating a defensively poor VfB Stuttgart side 3-1 to go 11 points clear for at least 24 hours.

There is an old addative: #AlwaysWatchFridayGames

And this game lived up to that.

The first half was energetic and lively, with the hosts edging it as the better side; Stuttgart’s only downfall in the first half was their defence, it seemed the occasion got to Finn Jeltsch and he made a couple of errors which led to big chances from Bayern, but they were unable to convert them for most of the half. At the other end of the pitch, Stuttgart showed glimpses of the team they were last season with a fun fluid style of play, which caused Bayern a lot of issues. VfB’s only issue was that they were not clinical enough and were unable to finish their chances, such as Deniz Undav being left alone in the middle of the 18-yard box and firing wide.

However, Stuttgart took the lead through a long-range goal from Angelo Stiller. The ex-Bayern academy player did the right thing and celebrated the goal against his former club. Stuttgart looked like they would go into half time up, until Michael Olise was played through and slotted past Alexander Nübel, to make it 1-1 after a very and I mean VERY long VAR check for offside.

Bayern turned things around in the second half as the game regressed to normality as the visitors gained control of the game, but they struggled to break down Stuttgart who sat back and were able to hold them off for the first 20 minutes. Then, from a bogstandard goalkeeper, Nübel played a ball to Stiller who was being pressed by Leon Goretzka, the goalscorer would lose the ball and Goretzka would score to give Bayern the lead. This really summed up Stuttgart’s evening as for most of the game their defence lacked solidity, and they had been lucky that their mistakes were not punished, until the strange decision by Nübel.

After that, Stuttgart did not have any clear chances to get back into the game before right at the end of the game, Kingsley Coman latched onto a Josha Vagnoman mistake (again, another defensive mistake) to make it 3-1 and secure the three points. The win for Bayern extends their lead at the top of the table to 11 points. Even if Bayer Leverkusen win tomorrow, the gap will be back to eight points and looking at the schedule there are very few opportunities for Bayern to drop more points. In simple terms, the title race is over (collective sigh).

For Stuttgart, they showed glimpses of the team that they were last season going forward, which is a big positive if they want to qualify for the Champions League this season. However, at the other end their inexperience showed, Jeltsch recovered from his early scares, but it was the elder statesmen Nübel who struggled, while Vagnoman was also at fault for the final goal. These will hold them back in trying to qualify for European football.

VfB Stuttgart:

Alexander Nübel (3), Josha Vagnoman (3), Finn Jeltsch (4), Jeff Chabot (5), Maximilian Mittelstädt (5), Atakan Karazor (4), Angelo Stiller (6), Jamie Leweling (6), Deniz Undav (6), Chris Führich (6), Nick Woltemade (6)

Others: Enzo Millot (5), Ramon Hendriks (5), Ermedin Demirovic (-), Jacob Bruun Larsen (-)

Bayern Munich:

Manuel Neuer (6), Konrad Laimer (5), Min-Jae Kim (6), Eric Dier (6), Alphonso Davies (6), Leon Goretzka (7), João Palhinha (5), Michael Olise (7), Jamal Musiala (7), Leroy Sané (6), Harry Kane (5)

Others: Kingsley Coman (6), Josip Stanisic (5), Serge Gnabry (-), Thomas Müller (-), Hiroki Ito (-)

GGFN Man of the Match: Michael Olise (7)

Was one of Bayern’s best players this evening. He created the most chances (four) and combined well with Jamal Musiala all night. His goal was also finely taken, finish as well. Leon Goretzka also deserves a shout out as he put in a great performance in midfield, his pressing created the second goal, which he scored, and filled in well for the absent Joshua Kimmich and Aleksandar Pavlovic. He continues to show that he is a useful squad member.

GGFN | Jack Meenan