FM24 VfB Stuttgart pt. V | 2024/25
In the third part of this series I gave an overview of the 2023/24 season, our inaugural one at the helms of VfB Stuttgart. It was brief and just gave a picture of the season as a whole, but now that I’m warmed into the side I’d like to give a slightly more in-depth look at our sophomore season as we progress through it. In the last edition we looked at the summer transfer window, so if you want to see the side I’d recommend checking that our first.
August — December
Possibly as strong a start as you could ask for, we demolished Hoffenheim in routine fashion and our performance against Wolfsburg was well managed by the side — despite the scoreline it never looked a close game as Die Weißgrünen managed just a single shot on target against us. Even the game against Bayern I wasn’t upset about, as we didn't roll over away at the defending champions. Laurin Ulrich, the 19 year old dubbed as the ‘next Mesut Ozil’, also stands as our top goalscorer with 3 goals so far in all comps.
A month in very much the same vein, with 6/9 point taken in the league and cup win alongside it. I was happy to see the boys not be caught in the glamour of European football at the first outing and equally happy to dispose of a bogeyman in FC. Koln who we failed to beat last season. The loss against newly-promoted Shalke did bring us back to reality before 10 of our men battled out a win against Union to keep our unbeaten home record alive.
What followed was great for cups, poor for the league. We continued the stride we started in the Europa and now have all points available so far. The home record did come to and end in the league against Freiburg which I’m a little fuming about, especially off the heels of a hard fought points against Leipzig and a game against Mainz in which we were unfortunate not to win.
A big more normal for us, outside of a 0–2 defeat to Bremen. Two months in a row with a home loss in the league after going the previous thirteen without one. Good to see Zaragoza finally stamp his name on the scoresheets consistently. For his £12m pricetag he’s looking a bargain.
The fixture list isn’t always kind, and I think a double against Dortmund to finish the first half of our campaign is one of the more unlucky draws we could’ve asked for. Gladbach was the most frustrating fixture this month, as we blew a 3–1 lead in the last 11 minutes of the game.
January is always a fun month, but unfortunately a month where we continued our inconsistent form. A big win against Hertha was a strong sign but yet again we lost points at home — our biggest asset is starting to become a weakness and something we’ll soon have to address. Perhaps the best note is that despite sitting just 8th in the Bundesliga, we qualified for the next round of the Europa League without having to go through play-offs.
New year, new players.
The first signing of the winter window is a man we targeted in the summer for the defensive midfield role, as we only have two first-team level players for the two positions. Sasa Lukic joins from Celtic for a total of £20m after all bonuses, after putting up insanely consistent numbers in the Scottish Premiership. As you can see from the radar on the left he is incredibly well rounded, finding a balance between what Stiller and Karazor provide so can cover for both.
An unfortunate turn of the winter was the departure of Waldemar Anton to Al-Nassr for £25.5m. He refused to stay so despite his consistency in playtime we had to let him go. Five centre-backs around Europe were shortlisted, with Adrian De la Fuente looking the best of the bunch, so for a measly fee of £4.6m he joins the side.
Speaking of measly fees, remember or debate on whether to sign Bailey or Bryan? Well Leon Bailey’s contract has lapsed another six months, so instead of a £30m fee and £125k p/w, we secured the Jamaican international for £4.7m and a weekly wage of just £65k. Absolute bargain for a winger of his quality. With Bailey, Bryan, Ulrich and Fuhrich we have four capable wingers and two positions I’m comfortable to lock off for the foreseeable.
Excuse me, what were we saying about being inconsistent? What a month for the boys, a famous win against the league leaders Bayern Munich, a hattrick from the Portuguese talisman and 13 goals, of which Leon Bailey assisted 5 in 3 games. An absolute statement month that we need to drive forward with if we want to retain a continental qualification spot by the end of the season.
This is a bit more back to normal. Despite an excellent double legged victory over European gatekeepers Sevilla, in an effort that cost manager Diego Alonso his job, we suffered mixed results in the league. A win, a draw and two losses. Simply not good enough, or consistent enough.
This is where the excitement kicks in. The league is pretty much set, we should finish 5th but do need a miracle in order to finish in the Champions League position. If we get it, it’ll be through the Europa, through the cup — through silverware. If you’ve been keeping up with the series you’ll know our tactic is modelled after Unai Emery’s Villa, who we matched up against in the away leg for an even game. An extremely even game with a magical moment from Zaragoza, blasting a shot from outside the box past Emi Martinez.
My heart sat in my throat as my players stepped up for the penalty shoot out. Seven takers for Stuttgart, goals. Six takers for Villa, goals — until Leander Dendonker stepped up to the plate and our 19 year old prodigy, Dennis Seiman saves the shot to send us to the Europa League final for the first time in 23 years.
You might be wondering where that European final is?
It’s in the next part, obviously.
