Preview: FC Bayern vs. VfB Stuttgart

By: phil | December 9th, 2011

In Match Week 16 of the 2011-2012 Bundesliga season. Bayern has successfully concluded the Group Stage of the Champions League, so we can focus on domestic play (both league and Pokal) until February. In the Bundesliga, FC Bayern comes off a 4-1 win over Werder Bremen that was ultimately convincing, but that had a few moments where we still didn’t look like we were moving at full speed. Stuttgart, meanwhile, controlled a majority of possession and felt like they were the better club last week vs. Köln, but were forced to settle for a 2-2 draw after Lucky Lukas Podolski hit a late equalizer.

Bayern sits astop the table, although we’re technically level with Schalke right now after they beat Hertha Berlin today. Dourtmund and ‘Gladbach are both within striking distance at 30 points, and both play relatively week opponents this week, so the pressure is on FC Bayern to pick up all three points, even on the road.

The Line-Up

Apparently the “flu virus” outbreak wasn’t just a ruse – Kroos, Robben, Müller, and Gomez are a real danger to miss out. None practiced today, and Jupp Heynckes has basically said he won’t name a squad until Sunday morning.

Of our non-infected regulars, Lahm, Ribery and Neuer were all rested in Wednesday’s CL match, so they should be ready to go (unless they’re dropped by the flu, as well).

So our back line and midfield are actually pretty set – Neuer, some combination of Lahm, DvB, Badstuber, Boateng, and Rafinha (4 of those 5), and then some combination of Alaba, Tymoschuk and Gustavo in the midfield (2 of those 3, with Kroos also a possibility). It’s up front where the absences, if they occur, will be felt the most. Olic is still looking to either prove he belongs or audition for a role elsewhere, so he has plenty to play for. Petersen will surely figure somehow if Gomez and Müller are both unable to go. While Petersen has generally played pretty well in his 5 months with the club, he was mostly a non-factor vs. City. I’m hoping that Gomez can make some kind of recovery over the next 40 hours and lead the line on Sunday morning.

The Opponent

VfB Stuttgart has had an up-and-down season, never winning or losing more than 2 in a row. Despite their disappointment last week, when they had several chances to go up by 2 goals but then ended up settling for a draw, they still sit in the 7^th spot in the table. From what I can discern, they line up in a 4-2-3-1, but their wings (the outside guys in the “3” line) are especially aggressive and will often play level with the striker. In other words, if they can get possession of the ball and set up shop, it turns into more of a 4-2-1-3. Cacau has been one of their better forwards for the past 5 years, and he’s returned from injury to lead the Stuttgart attack. Cacau has 4 goals on the year, second on the club only to Martin Harnik, the Austrian international, who has 6.

Agaisnt VfB, our fullbacks are going to have to stay pinned back for most of the match, due to their wings’ propensity to slash in. The good news is that they will give up counter-attacks. When Bayern wins a ball in the middle of the field or just on our own defensive side, a quick look upfield might reveal a 2-on-1 or a 3-on-2 if we can work the right ball through.

Final Notes

- The match will be shown live on Gol! TV, kicking off at 11:30 AM Eastern (USA time) on Sunday morning. We’ll be on hand with the Match Day Thread, and then have a recap and video highlights as soon as it’s done.

Again with the damn race track

- VfB plays at the Mercedes-Benz arena, which was renovated a few years ago ahead of the 2006 World Cup. It’s a pretty nice stadium and looks very cool at dusk, which it will be by the time this match kicks off.

- Check the weather report. Looks like we might have a good old-fashioned … FOG MATCH! It’s been a while.

Anyway, we really need a win here, so let’s home our boys can shake off the virus by Sunday. Or at least avoid infecting anyone new. Thanks for reading.