VfB Stuttgart and Bayer Leverkusen between frustration and joy

Sebastian Hoeneß looked into the camera immediately after the game, looked grim – and pushed it aside. The “Bild” newspaper wrote about a “fit of frustration”. Maybe she was right. VfB Stuttgart had no chance in the Bundesliga game in Leverkusen on Friday evening.

On the other hand: The VfB coach was lucky that the duel ended goalless. “I’m happy,” he said after the game. “Bayer Leverkusen was the better team, there can be no two opinions.”

This realization was bitter for Hoeneß. VfB was never able to win the previous games under his leadership against Bayer, but they were a spectacle every time – and almost every time VfB deserved to win.

On Friday, however, the people of Stuttgart mostly watched the Leverkusen team play football. If VfB goalkeeper Alexander Nübel hadn’t been so outstanding, Stuttgart would have deservedly gone home with a big away defeat.

According to the Expected Goals statistic, Leverkusen was clearly ahead of VfB with 2.81 (0.35).

The Stuttgart team couldn’t be really happy with their performance. To make matters worse, the two national players Jamie Leweling (hamstring injury) and Maximilan Mittelstädt (hit on the calf) were injured. Leweling, who has been in such good form recently, will be out for several weeks.

The mood at the current German champions Bayer Leverkusen was also clouded after the unfortunate draw. “We are not satisfied with the result. But in terms of play, it was certainly the best performance this season,” said midfield boss Granit Xhaka. That the gap to leaders FC Bayern could increase to seven points in the worst case? No problem at first. “After nine match days, no one has become champion yet.”

Leverkusen were particularly convincing defensively. For the first time ever, the factory team did not concede a goal in this Bundesliga season. Offensively, however, coach Xabi Alonso’s team missed a number of top chances. “I think we did enough to get a win,” said the Basque.

In just a few days both teams will be back in the Champions League. While Stuttgart hosts Atalanta Bergamo, Leverkusen travels to Alonso’s former club Liverpool FC. “Playing the Champions League at Anfield couldn’t get any better,” said Alonso. “It will be a big challenge for us.”