Stuttgart-Borussia Dortmund is a match of the 28th day of Bundesliga and is played on Saturday at 3:30 pm: TV, lineups, predictions.
The goals are different but the hunger for points is the same. Stuttgart is chasing salvation, while Borussia Dortmund is still in the title race. It’s not a tailspin that is being staged Saturday afternoon at the Mercedes-Benz Arena, but it looks a lot like one. The hosts, meanwhile, have risen with their third change of technical leadership, the one that saw Bruno Labbadia and Sebastian Hoeness take over a few days ago.
The former Hoffenheim coach has been in charge for only a week but has already succeeded in giving that much-needed shakeup to the red and white, who have been collected at the bottom of the standings. First the German Cup success against Nürnberg, which brought a semifinal berth. Then the crucial victory in the direct clash with Bochum, beaten 3-2 at home in the last round. The three league points had been missing since last February, and just since then Stuttgart had never scored more than two goals. Forbidden, however, to lift the foot off the accelerator: Ito and his teammates are still third-last, three points away from direct salvation. As of today, in fact, to keep their category they would have to play the promotion-relegation playoff with the third-placed team in the cadet league. And against a Borussia Dortmund side that for the first time in years can really threaten Bayern Munich’s supremacy, the chances of bringing points home are not very high.
Borussia Dortmund still believes in the title
Edim Terzic’s yellow-and-whites are, realistically, the only ones who can still keep the title race alive and give it some pizzazz. Union Berlin may have gone out for good after their defeat seven days ago against Borussia Dortmund of all places, which got the better of them 2-1 in the Signal Iduna Park clash.
Stuttgart’s Millot
Malen and Moukoko gave the Croatian-born coach three vital points as he remains -2 behind the Bavarians. It was important to get back to winning ways right away to quickly file away the double defeat between league and national cup against Bayern Munich and Leipzig. Borussia that in any case can no longer take any breaks if it wants to remain attached to the defending champions while waiting for a misstep on their part. Stuttgart’s is, moreover, a “happy” away trip: the yellow-and-whites have prevailed six times in their last seven visits to the Mercedes-Benz Arena.
The Prediction
Stuttgart has the second worst domestic performance in the tournament, with just four wins in thirteen matches. The red-and-whites, despite two consecutive successes with Hoeness at the helm, will not be able to avoid defeat against the league’s second-strongest side, which has not missed these kinds of matches so far. The second half could be more prolific than the first, as Borussia often scores in the final minutes.
Stuttgart-Borussia Dortmund likely lineups
- STOCKARDA (3-5-2): Bredlow; Mavropanos, Anton, Ito; Vagnoman, Endo, Karazor, Millot, Sosa; Guirassy, Führich.
- BORUSSIA DORTMUND (4-3-3): Kobel; Ryerson, Emre Can, Hummels, Guerreiro; Bellingham, Özcan, Brandt; Malen, Haller, Reus.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 1-2
