Overview
Sebastian Hoeness is helping Stuttgart experience an impressive Bundesliga season, as the team not only competes for a Champions League spot but also nurtures ambitions to defend the DFB-Pokal title.
Last season, Die Roten won the throne after a 4-2 victory over Arminia Bielefeld thanks to goals from Nick Woltemade, Deniz Undav and a double from Enzo Millot.
That title is a bright spot in the campaign where Stuttgart only finished ninth in the Bundesliga. However, entering this season, they have made clear progress when they are ranked fourth in the standings, despite parting ways with some key players in the summer.
However, the recent form of the MHPArena home team is unstable. Stuttgart has won and lost alternately in the last 7 matches in all competitions. Most recently, they lost 2-4 to Bayern Munich just one week after an impressive 4-0 victory over Hamburger SV.
This irregularity is also clearly reflected at home when they win three and lose three in the most recent matches. Notably, Stuttgart's journey to the semi-finals largely comes from facing lower-ranked opponents, making their real ability against strong teams still a question mark.
In contrast to their opponent, Freiburg entered the match with extremely high form. Julian Schuster's team not only reached the Europa League semi-finals after defeating Celta Vigo with a total score of 6-1, but they also maintained a four-game winning streak before the semi-finals.
At the DFB-Pokal, Freiburg had to struggle to overcome Hertha Berlin in a penalty shootout, but since then they have regained stability. The recent 2-1 victory over Heidenheim continues to affirm their impressive form, with Johan Manzambi and Maximilian Eggestein both making their mark.
More broadly, Freiburg has won six of their last 7 matches in all competitions, only narrowly losing to Bayern Munich. Their away record is also very noteworthy with three consecutive victories, bringing great confidence before the away match at MHPArena.
Despite losing to Stuttgart 0-1 in early February, Freiburg is currently a completely different team. With stable form and excitement in the sprint stage, the away team has every reason to dream of a double title this season.
In that context, Stuttgart will have to show the bravery of the defending champion if they want to overcome the big challenge named Freiburg to take another step towards the final.
Personnel situation
Stuttgart will not have the service of center-back Finn Jeltsch due to unhealed muscle injury. In that context, Jeff Chabot is likely to pair with Ramon Hendriks in the center of defense in the upcoming match.
In attack, the home team also suffered losses when Justin Diehl and young talent Lazar Jovanovic were sidelined due to injuries. However, Hoeness still has quality options when Jamie Leweling, Chris Fuhrich and Bilal El Khannouss are expected to support the spearhead Deniz Undav.
On the other side, Freiburg also does not have the strongest force. Center-back Max Rosenfelder is absent due to a hamstring injury, forcing Julian Schuster to recalculate the defense plan. Matthias Ginter is likely to take on the role of defense leader and play alongside Bruno Ogbus.
In midfield, Freiburg is missing two important players, Daniel-Kofi Kyereh and Patrick Osterhage, as both are still in the process of recovering from injuries. This makes the task of controlling the midfield likely to be assigned to Maximilian Eggestein and Johan Manzambi.
Expected lineup:
Stuttgart: Nubel, Vagnoman, Hendriks, Chabot, Mittelstadt, Karazor, Stiller, Leweling, El Khannouss, Fuhrich, Undav.
Freiburg: Muller, Treu, Ginter, Ogbus, Makengo, Eggestein, Manzambi, Beste, Suzuki, Scherhant, Matanovic.
The match between Stuttgart and Freiburg took place at 1:45 a.m. on April 24 (Vietnam time).
