Well, the heart break of two blown opportunities in Dortmund has subsided, and though it is still possible for Dortmund to lose their grip on top spot in the Bundesliga, the chances are slim at best. The action continues with the Friday Fixture, however, as we preview the next match on the schedule for you here on Everyone’s Favorite German Footy Blog…..
DAS BOOT!
This week our Friday fixture is a tale of two cities; One having the best of times and one having the worst of times. Stuttgart have been on a torrid pace as of late, enjoying their best offensive output since Mario Gomez’s last season with Stuttgart. That Golden Age for the Swaabian outfit was short-lived though it did include such stellar talents as Sami Khedira, Cacau and Mario Gomez and Thomas Hitzlsperger. The names have changed, as all but Cacau have moved on from the club, but Stuttgart have once again become a squad that scores goals for fun and thrills their fans with terrific offensive displays.
Bremen, on the other hand, are a team who have finally succumbed to the collapse that was predeicted many seasons ago. First, people speculated that the loss of Diego would be the end of their dominant reign. A then unknown young Turkish/German by the name of Mesut Özil took his place and astounded the world with his close control, his unbelievable vision and his incredible left boot.
Then, the loss of Özil to Real Madrid was supposed to be the end of their dominance, but still they persevered. Then, Mertesacker left for Arsenal earlier this season, and though they held together for some time, injuries to striker Claudio Pizarro and general unrest led to the collapse of their second half of the season and a marked lack of consistency in the squad. In essence, they have disintegrated over the course of the season and have finally done something which I would have done years ago and decided to part ways with inconsistent goalkeeper Tim Wiese when his contract runs out at the end of the season.
There are rumours abound that Wiese will move on to Real Madrid, but why Real Madrid would let go of Iker Casillas in favour of Wiese boggles my mind. Perhaps Wiese would be convinced to serve as deputy to the far superior Casillas, but nothing in Wiese’s often arrogant and self-righteous comportment indicates he would be willing be a backup, even for such a prestigious club as Real; and that is not even beginning to address the fact that he would likely get himself embarrassed by many teams in the Spanish league.
If we focus on the match at hand, however, we see a tale of two clubs going in completely opposite directions. Bremen did show a bit of life in managing a 2 – 2 draw against Gladbach, but Stuttgart continued their goal-scoring prowess with a 3 – 1 road victory at Augsburg in mid-week play. There is no question in my mind that this is Stuttgart’s match to lose, and that Bremen will be just another squad left in the wake of a surging Stuttgart that have rebuilt themselves nicely since the loss of the core of their talent from 3 shorts seasons ago.
Stuttgart 3 – 1 Bremen
Well, that’s it for the Friday Fixture, dear readers. Come back shortly, as we will be previewing the Saturday Matches as the end of the Bundesliga season draws nigh here on Everyone’s Favorite German Footy Blog…..
DAS BOOT!
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