Stuttgart – Darmstadt
Bundesliga Round 5
Stuttgart, September 22, 20:30 CET
Stuttgart has a perfect chance for a convincing victory on Friday, at home against Darmstadt in Bundesliga round 5.
In the last five games, they achieved four victories, and scored as many as 23 goals in those five games - and conceded nine goals. For now, Stuttgart shows no intention of primarily defending in any match. This will especially not be the case in the duel with Darmstadt.
The outsiders, the visiting team, have only one point in four rounds of the new Bundesliga season. Last weekend, Darmstadt finally managed to avoid defeat – at home in a 3:3 draw. And even that game showed that this team has serious problems in defense - Darmstadt conceded as many as 16 goals in the last five games. It is realistic to expect that Stuttgart could solve the game already in the first half.
Since the beginning of May, when they were still playing in the 2nd Bundesliga, Darmstadt has won only one game (including friendly games!) – against Magdeburg on May 19 (1:0). In almost five months, the Darmstadt team lost as many as ten games with only three draws. Out of ten defeats, seven were by more than one goal difference. It is certain that it will be the same on Friday, against the excellent Stuttgart team.
Interestingly, in the last two H2H duels, Stuttgart failed to beat this opponent – in July 2021 (friendly game, 1:1) and June 2020 (2nd Bundesliga, victory for the away team 3:1). Now Stuttgart is the absolute favorite and in an excellent position to "collect debts" to this rival.
The problem for the home team before this match is the illness of midfielder Ulrich – while Kastanaras, Nartey and Vagnoman are injured and in the process of recovery.
However, Darmstadt is faced with much more serious problems of long-term injuries to key players. It is especially important that the team is still not counting on Scottish forward Hornby. Croatian defender Matej Maglica is also suspended.
All in all, hardly anyone expects Darmstadt to avoid defeat on this away trip – points will be sought in the coming weeks. Stuttgart players, on the other hand, want to position themselves as a team competing for a place in the Champions League next season. They are currently in an excellent position, and the expected convincing victory on Friday would only strengthen them in the fight for the top.
It is no coincidence that "Die Roten", a proud Stuttgart team, are the most efficient in the Bundesliga after four rounds with 14 goals. Guinean striker Guirassy has already scored eight goals this season and he has an ideal opportunity to improve that score even more against Darmstadt, on their home field in Stuttgart.