MX23RW : Thursday, March 28 19:14:32| >> :600:335394:335394:
[monks data]
Stuttgart
Bundesliga | Gameweek 32
Apr 30, 2022 at 2.30pm UK
 
Wolfsburg

Stuttgart
1 - 1
Wolfsburg

Fuhrich (89')
Sosa (22'), Endo (34'), Karazor (55')
FT(HT: 0-1)
Brooks (13')
Schlager (61'), Nmecha (66')

Preview: Stuttgart vs. Wolfsburg - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Saturday's Bundesliga clash between Stuttgart and Wolfsburg, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Stuttgart continue their quest for Bundesliga survival when they welcome Wolfsburg to the Mercedes Benz Arena on Saturday.

The hosts remain in huge danger of the drop following a four-game winless streak, whilst the visitors all but confirmed their survival following a thumping win last weekend.


Match preview

VfB Stuttgart coach Pellegrino Matarazzo on April 8, 2022© Reuters

When Stuttgart ended a dreadful run of form by picking up an impressive seven points from three games at the beginning of March, they looked to be stringing together a positive set of results worthy of pulling themselves away from danger.

However, since the dramatic 3-2 comeback win against fellow strugglers Augsburg over a month ago, Pellegrino Matarazzo's side have failed to win in their last four outings.

Hard-fought draws at Arminia Bielefeld and Mainz 05 have preceded defeats to Borussia Dortmund and Hertha Berlin, with the latter being a particularly damaging blow to their hopes of survival.

The relegation six-pointer in the capital was a huge opportunity for Die Roten to climb off the relegation playoff spot and put some daylight between themselves and Bielefeld in the automatic drop zone.

However, despite enjoying their fair share of possession and opportunities on goal, particularly in the second 45, Stuttgart lacked the quality decision making and finishing required in the final third to get something out of the game.

This has been the case in recent weeks for Matarazzo's side, who will look to end a run of three matches without a goal when they host Wolfsburg on Saturday, with the disappointing run seeing them cut four points adrift of Hertha in safety as a result.

With next weekend's daunting trip to champions Bayern Munich to follow, and a tough task against European chasing FC Koln on the final day, Saturday's hosts may well see the encounter at the Mercedes Benz Arena as a must-win if they are to escape from danger in the closing weeks of the campaign.

Wolfsburg coach Florian Kohfeldt reacts on January 23, 2022© Reuters

Meanwhile, Wolfsburg's inconsistent season continued when they hosted Mainz last weekend, albeit for a positive reason on this occasion.

A recent 4-0 thumping of Bielefeld on home soil was followed by a humiliating 6-1 defeat at Dortmund on their travels, before Florian Kohfeldt's men bounced back to record a 5-0 hammering of their visitors for another comprehensive result at the Volkswagen Arena last time out.

The sending off of visiting defender Niklas Tauer midway through the first half proved to be a pivotal moment, with the score only at 1-0 at this stage, before a remarkable attacking display for the remainder of the opening 45 yielded four further goals for Die Wolfe as they made the extra man count.

However, Kohfeldt will be looking for his side to carry those big home wins into their away form too when they travel to Stuttgart on Saturday, with disappointing results on the road in recent weeks, as well as all campaign, contributing to a hugely disappointing campaign.

Despite the three points last time out, Wolfsburg could only move up to 12th in the table, which opened up a nine-point gap between this weekend's opponents in the relegation playoff spot, meaning survival has been all but confirmed.

Retaining their Bundesliga status was certainly not the goal when Wolfsburg kicked off the season back in August, but now that a catastrophic drop out of the top flight has been avoided, Saturday's visitors will look to finish the season strongly and climb as high as possible in the table with the view ahead to a much-improved season next year.

Stuttgart Bundesliga form:
  • D
  • W
  • D
  • L
  • D
  • L

Wolfsburg Bundesliga form:
  • L
  • L
  • L
  • W
  • L
  • W



Team News

Wolfsburg's Maxence Lacroix pictured in February 2021© Reuters

Numerous injuries continue to limit Matarazzo's options for Stuttgart, as they have done all season, with as many as seven first-team players potentially being unavailable on Saturday.

Naouirou Ahamada, Nikolas Nartey, Mohamed Sankoh, Silas Katompa Mvumpa and Pascal Stenzel are all ruled out for the hosts, whilst Clinton Mola and Omar Marmoush are labelled as doubts.

Atakan Karazor and Daniel Didavi look to have recovered from COVID-19 and a heel injury respectively however, with the former potentially coming into the side in the place of the injured Stenzel, which would see Waldemar Anton move deeper into a more familiar role in the heart of the defence.

As for the visitors, Maxence Lacroix remains a doubt due to the hamstring injury that ruled him out of the thumping win against Mainz.

Should the Frenchman miss out once more, Kohfeldt is likely to name an unchanged starting lineup, meaning a four-man defence should remain in place ahead of his preferred three-man back line.

Regardless of any alterations at the back though, Jonas Wind and Max Kruse will continue in attack after the duo shared all five goals between them last time out, with Lukas Nmecha also joining the forwards in a threatening attacking trio.

Long-term absentees Micky van de Ven, William and Paulo Otavio are joined on the sidelines by Luca Waldschmidt.

Stuttgart possible starting lineup:
Muller; Mavropanos, Anton, Ito, Sosa; Endo, Karazor, Mangala; Tomas, Kalajdzic, Fuhrich

Wolfsburg possible starting lineup:
Casteels; Baku, Bornauw, Brooks, Roussillon; Schlager, Arnold, Gerhardt; Wind, L Nmecha, Kruse


SM words green background

We say: Stuttgart 2-1 Wolfsburg

Stuttgart have earned some dramatic home wins in recent weeks to keep their survival hopes alive, and with so much riding on this game, we can see them rising to the occasion to earn a vital victory here.

The visitors may well have impressed last time out, but inconsistencies in their season, as well as their poor run of form on the road, mean it remains difficult to see them putting together back-to-back wins.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting under 3.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Under 3.5:curl



ID:484516:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect12020:

Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Stuttgart win with a probability of 44.65%. A win for Wolfsburg had a probability of 31.74% and a draw had a probability of 23.6%.

The most likely scoreline for a Stuttgart win was 2-1 with a probability of 9.12%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-0 (7.7%) and 2-0 (6.53%). The likeliest Wolfsburg win was 1-2 (7.51%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (10.75%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with a 10.8% likelihood.


Previews by email

Click here to get Sports Mole's daily email of previews and predictions for every major game!


Game History

How you voted: Stuttgart vs Wolfsburg

Stuttgart
55.0%
Draw
30.0%
Wolfsburg
15.0%
20
Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
Borussia Monchengladbach's Kouadio Kone celebrates scoring their first goal with Denis Zakaria on January 22, 2022
Read Next:
Saturday's Bundesliga predictions including Borussia Monchengladbach vs. Koln
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free match previews newsletter! Updates are sent twice a week.
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Bayer LeverkusenB. Leverkusen26224066184870
2Bayern MunichBayern26193478314760
3Stuttgart26182660312956
4Borussia DortmundDortmund26148453322150
5RB Leipzig26154760322849
6Eintracht FrankfurtFrankfurt26101064235740
7Augsburg269894342135
8Hoffenheim2696114450-633
9Freiburg2696113648-1233
10Werder Bremen2686123541-630
11Heidenheim2678113544-929
12Borussia MonchengladbachBorussia M'bach26610104650-428
13Union BerlinUnion Berlin2684142542-1728
14Wolfsburg2667133144-1325
15VfL BochumVfL Bochum26510113054-2425
16Mainz 05Mainz26310132246-2419
17FC Koln2639142047-2718
18SV Darmstadt 98Darmstadt2627172665-3913


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!