VfB Stuttgart host FC Schalke 04 on Sunday afternoon at the Mercedes-Benz-Arena looking to chalk up their first points of the season.
Overview and Form
Stuttgart go into this weekend's match being one of only two teams without a single point to their name. They've played four times this season and lost on each occasion, most recently an away defeat in the capital, Berlin. Their previous defeats came against 1. FC Köln, Hamburger SV and Eintracht Frankfurt. Goalscoring hasn't particularly been an issue, they've scored five times, but defensively they've been a lot more uncertain, conceding twelve times in the four matches played, the joint worst defensive record in the league.
In contrast, Schalke have won their last two matches in all competitions, which makes for much more pleasant reading for fans of the Gelsenkirchen side. They'd previously had quite a stop start opening to their season, but a home win against 1. FSV Mainz 05 last time out in the league, and an impressive 0-3 win in Cyprus against APOEL Nicosia in the UEFA Europa League means Schalke are putting together quite a tidy little run.
Head-to-head
The sides have fought out some real battles in their time. Stuttgart slightly hold the upper hand, winning 44% (43/97) of competitive meetings between the sides, just ousting Schalke's 40% win ratio against the Swabians. The sides have also played out 15 draws. More recently, however, it's Schalke who hold the upper hand. They've won three of the last five meetings, including a double last season.
Team News
The home side are without long-term absentees Mitch Langerak and Robbie Kruse as well as young midfielder Marvin Wanitzek. However, they do welcome back goalkeeper Przemyslaw Tyton after suspension and hope to have defender Timo Baumgartl available again. The game will most likely come too soon for Timo Werner.
Schalke remain without Matija Nastasić and there are questions over Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting who missed the Europa League match against APOEL with an infection. André Breitenreiter is expected to name an unchanged side to which has won the last two matches.
Key Players
VfB pose a real threat going forward. The instrumental Daniel Didavi creates his fair share, as well as chipping in with the occasional goal himself. He has two goals to his name already this term. Likewise with Daniel Ginczek. He has started the season in strong form and has also registered two goals this season.
Klaas-Jan Huntelaar has been in unstoppable form of late. A goal last time out in the league against Mainz, and a brace against APOEL in midweek means he take his tally to four for the season and counting. New arrival Pierre-Emile Højbjerg is yet to start but possesses all the attributes to prove to be a good signing for Schalke.
Thoughts from the camps
VfB Stuttgart manager Alexander Zorniger said: "We have no intention of approaching this game like a side that has lost their last four matches. I have a clear feeling that we are pressing ahead. The lads were really fiery in training."
On the other side, André Breitenreiter, manager of Schalke 04, commented: "We've ticked the Europa League off our list, now we're fully focused on the Bundesliga. The game in Nicosia really took it out of us, so it's important to recover as best we can."
When talking about availability of players after their midweek trip to Cyprus, he added: "We need to see how each player has dealt with the strain from the match, however, it's true that the boys who played did a very good job. On the whole, I was very happy with the way they performed."