Two of the Bundesliga's out-of-form sides face off against each other on Saturday hoping that something has to give, with Stuttgart hosting Arminia Bielefeld at the Mercedes Benz Arena.
The hosts are on a run of just one win in their last nine league outings, whilst the visitors are actually one of two winless teams left in the division after the opening 10 matchdays.
Match preview
Stuttgart's second season back in the German top flight has not gone to plan for manager Pellegrino Matarazzo so far, with his side struggling down in 13th place heading into Saturday's fixture.
After achieving an impressive ninth-placed finish on their return to the Bundesliga in the 2020-21 campaign, Matarazzo has been hit with a lengthy injury list, as well as some high-profile departures in the summer.
An opening weekend hammering of Greuther Furth, by a 5-1 scoreline, was supposed to set Die Roten on their way to another solid season, but just the one win since has hampered their progress.
The injuries and departures have certainly played their part at Stuttgart, but a 4-1 loss at the hands of struggling Augsburg last weekend will still be deemed unacceptable regardless of the circumstances.
Chris Fuhrich had initially given them the lead in the early stages, but despite controlling possession, they failed to create anything of note for the rest of the encounter, whilst putting in an unconvincing defensive display.
A home match against struggling opponents on Saturday will be viewed as the perfect opportunity for Matarazzo and his side to kickstart their campaign, although they will be mindful of the fact that they lost both meetings with Bielefeld last season, failing to score a goal in the process as well.
Meanwhile, as mentioned above, Bielefeld remain winless after the opening 10 Bundesliga matches, an unwanted record matched only by the newly-promoted Greuther.
That run leaves Frank Kramer's side second-from-bottom, with only Greuther's dreadful return to the top flight ensuring that Bielefeld are not the side propping up the table.
Scoring goals was the problem in the 2020-21 season, as Die Arminen narrowly avoided relegation to the 2.Bundesliga, with those struggles continuing this time around too.
In fact, Bielefeld's disappointing return of six is the lowest across the entire division and leaves them set for the drop should things not improve quickly in the coming weeks.
Jacob Laursen did manage to net a rare goal for his side against Mainz 05 last weekend, but this was not enough to earn a point as they fell 2-1 on home soil, in yet another encounter in which they lacked creativity and ideas in the final third of the pitch.
A small positive note that Kramer and his side can take into Saturday's trip to Stuttgart is the fact that their last Bundesliga win arrived in this exact fixture - a 2-0 triumph on the final day of last season at the Mercedes Benz Arena.
- L
- D
- W
- D
- D
- L
- D
- W
- D
- D
- L
- L
- D
- L
- L
- D
- L
- L
- L
- L
- D
- L
- L
- L
Team News
As well as tasting a 4-1 defeat last weekend, Stuttgart's lengthy injury list was extended in Augsburg, with Fuhrich coming off injured shortly after netting the opening goal.
Daniel Didavi and Marc-Oliver Kempf were also replaced inside the opening 45 minutes due to knocks, and whilst the former is available, the latter faces a spell on the sidelines as well and misses out on Saturday.
Talismanic striker Sasa Kalajdzic has been missing since the second game of the season and remains unavailable until after the international break.
Konstantinos Mavropanos, Omar Marmoush, Enzo Millot, Florian Muller, Mohamed Sankoh, Momo Cisse and Silas Katompa Mvumpa make up the remainder of the list.
As for the visitors, their injury fortunes are completely the opposite to that of their hosts on Saturday, with manager Kramer having a fully-fit squad available to choose from.
Cedric Brunner is one of the players to have recently returned from a short absence, and he could come back into the side, along with the likes of Patrick Wimmer.
Stuttgart possible starting lineup:
Bredlow; Anton, Ito, Mola; Endo; Coulibaly, Didavi, Mangala, Sosa; Al Ghaddioui, Klimowicz
Arminia Bielefeld possible starting lineup:
Ortega; Brunner, Pieper, Andrade; Wimmer, Fernandes, Prietl, Schopf, Laursen; Klos, Lasme
We say: Stuttgart 2-1 Arminia Bielefeld
Despite the number of players unavailable for Stuttgart on Saturday, they should possess the quality to overcome a struggling Bielefeld side, particularly with home advantage.
It is hard to see where Bielefeld's first three points are going to come from, particularly on their travels.
Top tip
body check tags ::
Previews by email
