In Regensburg, VfB Stuttgart made short work of the 2nd Bundesliga’s bottom club and effortlessly advanced to the quarterfinals of the German Cup. A recovery for morale and bodies alike.
A cup evening just as you’d hope: VfB could rest half the starting lineup from their last Bundesliga match on the bench, still secure a commanding cup win, and neither had to go into extra time nor exert themselves against a brave but outmatched second-division side. The most exciting part of Tuesday, in fact, was the fan liaison’s travel advisory:
Travel Info for Regensburg:
Not only around 2,000 VfB fans are traveling to Regensburg from Stuttgart today. Jahn Regensburg fans maintain a friendship with the Stuttgarter Kickers and expect a low triple-digit number of their supporters to join them.
On the highway, vehicles with Stuttgart license plates may contain either “Reds” or “Blues.”
Along with the blue scarves in the home end and chants that were rarely caught by other TV cameras besides SWR or Regio TV Stuttgart’s.
Because VfB’s team showed two things in the DFB-Pokal Round of 16: first, they wanted to establish clear dominance right away, and second, they could easily do so against a team straddling the boundary between the third and second divisions. Even without several key players, who—except for Angelo Stiller and Enzo Millot—enjoyed the match from the bench. Unlike Kaiserslautern, Regensburg posed little tactical or technical challenge, allowing VfB to execute their passing game and capitalize on their quality—like Millot’s spin-and-shoot goal to open the scoring.
Room to Shine
It was also nice to see other players shine on Tuesday night. For instance, Anrie Chase scored his first goal for VfB, and Justin Diehl showcased his improving form with a brilliant pass to set up Woltemade, who poked the ball past the goalkeeper into the net. However, it was noticeable that his U21 national teammate Frans Krätzig was not in the squad at all, and from the second team, only Jarzinho Malanga got a chance to prove himself. For players like Thomas Kastanaras, the door to the first team seems firmly closed for now.
Aside from such side notes, it was truly a match, as mentioned earlier, to savor. The first day of this round of the cup already offered a surprise with Bielefeld’s home victory. Hopefully, VfB can avoid Leverkusen and the winner of Frankfurt vs. Leipzig in the quarterfinals. A trip to the Alm (Arminia Bielefeld’s stadium) or a derby—now that would be something. First, though, Saint Nicholas Day on Friday brings not only Union Berlin but also a crucial Champions League game against Bern. This time, however, the whole squad will get a few extra days to recover.
Picture: © Sebastian Widmann/Getty Images