VfB haven’t had much time for a breather. Three days after the DFB Cup encounter at Paderborn, the Cannstatt guys are back on the road on Saturday 31 October (15:30 CET) away to Bayer 04 Leverkusen, battling for important points in the Bundesliga. Bayer 04 have registered four wins, one draw and two losses in the first seven games of the campaign, as well as winning all their matches in the DFB Cup and UEFA Europa League. Sebastian Hoeneß’s side can therefore expect to be in for another tough afternoon against the Werkself.
“We require a top performance if we’re going to stand up to Leverkusen, which we’ve done on a number of occasions in recent years,” said head coach Hoeneß ahead of the trip to the BayArena, where the hosts have a perfect record so far this season. VfB have picked up points from their trips to Leverkusen in each of the last two seasons, with a 0-0 draw in November 2024 followed by a 4-1 success in January of this year – Stuttgart’s first league win in the Farbenstadt since 2018.
If they want to return home with points again this time, certain characteristics are required, according to Hoeneß. “Special performances stem from team spirit, unity and fight. We want to display those qualities together on Saturday.”
Team news
For his team’s seventh competitive fixture in three weeks, the VfB boss must do without Josha Vagnoman (thigh), Angelo Stiller (adductor) and Leo Sauer (gluteal muscle).
