“We need to be at our best”

VfB Stuttgart are the only Bundesliga club yet to register a draw on their travels this season, having won six and lost five of their 11 away matches in 2023/24 so far. Sebastian Hoeneß’s side have won their last two league games on the road, beating SC Freiburg 3-1 before edging to a 2-1 victory at SV Darmstadt 98 last weekend.

Hoeneß and his players will hope to make it three straight away victories when they take on VfL Wolfsburg at 18:30 CET on Saturday, but the VfB boss knows it won’t be an easy task. “Wolfsburg have an experienced coach in Niko Kovac,” he said. “They have a lot of quality in their squad and in their last two games against Borussia Dortmund and Eintracht Frankfurt, they matched two of the best teams in the league. We need to be at our best on Saturday in order to get a result in Wolfsburg.”

Duo to return, positive signs with Nübel

Hoeneß will be able to call upon fit-again Deniz Undav and Atakan Karazor, who have “indicated they’re fit to play” in Lower Saxony. Goalkeeper Alexander Nübel, who has been suffering with a bruised hip, is also on the brink of returning to action. “With Alex, we’ll wait until the final training session – but we’re confident he can be involved too,” said the head coach.

Fond memories

Genki Haraguchi (illness) and long-term absentees Nikolas Nartey and Dan-Axel Zagadou will miss the trip to Wolfsburg, while Roberto Massimo has been unable to take full part in training due to an adductor problem.

Meanwhile, VfB have fond memories of the home game against the Wolves earlier this season, having triumphed 3-1 at the MHPArena in October thanks to a Serhou Guirassy hat-trick.