VfL Wolfsburg

VfL Wolfsburg were left empty-handed on Saturday afternoon away to last season’s Bundesliga runners-up. Niko Kovac’s men were beaten 1-0 by Borussia Dortmund on Matchday 5, with Marco Reus scoring the only goal (68’) of a tight contest in front of 81,365 fans at the sold-out Signal Iduna Park.

VfL Wolfsburg have made Polish goalkeeper Kamil Grabara their first new signing for the 2024/25 season. The 24-year-old will join the club on a long-term contract from Danish champions and Champions League participants FC Copenhagen in July 2024. The two clubs have agreed not to disclose the transfer fee.

New signing Cedric Zesiger did not take long to settle into life in Wolfsburg, carving out a spot in the starting line-up straight away. The Swiss international spoke to us about his ambitions with VfL, how the season has gone so far and the forthcoming clash away to 1899 Hoffenheim on Saturday (kick-off 15:30 CEST). 

VfL Wolfsburg suffered their first defeat of the season on Saturday afternoon, going down 3-1 at Hoffenheim despite leading 1-0 courtesy of Tiago Tomas after 36 minutes. The Green-and-Whites made the better start and controlled proceedings, but conceded an equaliser in first-half stoppage time to John Anthony Brooks. The hosts improved after the break and turned the game around, Maximilian Beier making it 2-1 on the hour mark before Robert Skov sealed the deal in the 74th minute. 
After three matchdays, the first international break of the season will take place before VfL host Union Berlin at the Volkswagen Arena on 16 September (15:30 CEST).

After nine years in the Wolfsburg jersey, Koen Casteels will leave the club at the end of this season. Both sides have agreed not to renew the goalkeeper’s contract, which runs until 30 June 2024. The 31-year-old Belgium international, who joined VfL in January 2015, has been the Wolves’ number one for seven years and was also captain of the team in the 2021/22 campaign.

After suffering their first defeat of the season at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim, several VfL Wolfsburg players have bid farewell to their club colleagues and joined their respective national teams ahead of the upcoming international break. Wolves boss Niko Kovac will be without 12 players for the next couple of weeks, almost all of whom are involved in key qualifying games.

VfL Wolfsburg have further strengthened their squad shortly before the end of the summer transfer window with Swedish striker Amin Sarr. The 22-year-old forward joins the Wolves on loan from French Ligue 1 side Olympique Lyonnais until the end of this season and will wear the number 9 jersey.

VfL midfielder Lukas Ambros has joined third-division outfit SC Freiburg II on loan for a year. The 19-year-old, who moved to the Wolves’ U17 youth side from Slavia Prague in 2020, made his Bundesliga debut for the Green-and-Whites in the 2022/23 campaign in the 3-0 home defeat against RB Leipzig.

Having won both of their Bundesliga games so far this season, the Wolves currently sit fourth in the table. They are obviously keen to keep that run going when they travel to TSG 1899 Hoffenheim on Saturday 2 September (kick-off 15:30 CEST), as Niko Kovac’s charges face their second successive away game.

VfL Wolfsburg made it two wins from two at the start of the Bundesliga season, coming from behind to beat 1. FC Köln 2-1. After a goalless first half, it was only after the break that the hosts began to really threaten and they took the lead through VfL loanee Luca Waldschmidt in the 55th minute. The Wolves responded quickly through Jonas Wind, who then made it 2-1 ten minutes later with his fourth goal of the campaign. It’s the Dane’s first brace away from home for VfL.