Hoeneß confirms Millot will start in place of suspended Stiller

Asked how he planned to cope with the loss of midfield talisman Angelo Stiller (suspended) against Leverkusen this weekend, VfB Stuttgart trainer Sebastian Hoeneß gave a clear answer at his Thursday presser. Attacker Enzo Millot will take the midfielder's place. While not explicitly guaranteeing that - as was the case against Dortmund on match-day 28 - Millot would slot in alongside six-partner Atakan Karazor, Hoeneß dropped strong hints that he would. 

"Enzo has proven on two or three occasions that he can handle the position," Hoeneß said, "I think it will be fairly straightforward on the Leverkusen side too. If Robert Andrich and Exequiel Palacios are fit, both of them will play. Of course, that's also a pretty good double-six set-up." 

Leverkusen must also cope with the loss of their midfield linchpin. Granit Xhaka too must serve a suspension after picking up a fifth yellow card. Hoeneß, who has always reserved strong words of praise for his former FCB II and TSG protégée Stiller, went so far as to compare Stiller with Xhaka at the presser. 

"Both are similar types of players who have a similar impact on their teams," Hoeneß noted, "Both are able to dictate the flow of the game." 

Hoeneß' decision to stick with his more trustworthy 4-2-3-1 makes logical sense after an attempt to roll out a 3-4-3 against SV Werder Bremen led to Stuttgart dropping valuable points on Sunday Millot has officially worked in midfield twice this year, also impressing during the match-day 19 win over Leipzig.