15.30 kickoffs: Stuttgart rout newcomers Fürth, Kramaric and Hoffenheim pile on late
VfB Stuttgart took no care to roll out the welcome mat for SpVgg Greuther Fürth's first Bundesliga match in over seven years.
A Marc Oliver Kempf brace ensured that die Kleeblätter received a rude welcome indeed on the wrong side of a 1-5 thrashing.
In front of some 18,000 live fans at the Mercedes Benz Arena, VfB Stuttgart's second season back in the German top flight got off to the best possible start. Pellegrino Matarazzo's men overcame an initially courageous start by their newly promoted guests and an early injury to midfielder Atakan Karazor, to eventually find their feet and engineer a 5-0 blowout.
A Marc Oliver Kempf brace ensured that die Kleeblätter received a rude welcome indeed on the wrong side of a 1-5 thrashing.
Stuttgart trainer Martarazzo made three changes from the 6-0 DFB Pokal win in Potsdam last week. Newly crowned captain Wataru Endo and anchoring piece of the back-three Waldemar Anton joined first-choice keeper Florian Müller in the starting XI.
The two sides traded early chances before Karazor opted not to chance it after incurring injury in the 9th minute. As the Swabians reorganized themselves behind substitute Philipp Klement, Fürth attackers Julian Green and Branimir Hrogota were able to manufacture chances during a relatively even twenty-minute stretch.
VfB captain Endo nevertheless charged up brilliantly to open up the scoring at the half hour mark. Philipp Förster played the Japanese international through on the right and the newly returned Olympian finished deftly with a lift over keeper Sascha Burchert. The subbed-on Klement would add a second six minutes later, played in on the left by Mateo Klimowicz.
Despite the fact that the guests still managed to play on a serviceable level for the duration of the half, defensive discipline broke down shortly after the restart. Marc Oliver Kempf converted a Borna Sosa cross after a short corner in the 55th. Hardly anyone on the Kleeblätter appeared interested in marking Kempf when the same pair combined off another corner twenty minutes later.
In between the Kempf goals, back-up striker Hamadi Al Ghaddioui also added a tally in the 61st. Fürth Jamie Leweling grabbed a meaningless consolation at 90+3.
Elsewhere in the Bundesliga's 15:30 Kickoffs, Hoffenheim were also able to run up the score late, packing in three goals in the final twelve minutes to top Augsburg 4-0. Andrej Kramaric got off to a fantastic start with a hat trick of assists in the encounter.
Goals were in shorter supply in the other three matches. Freiburg and Bielefeld were unable to produce any in a 0-0 draw. Leverkusen and Union Berlin remained deadlocked at 1-1 in a match that listed after two early goals.
Despite being reduced to ten men early, VfL Bochum managed to keep the scoreline in Wolfsburg low. Mark van Bommel's Wölfe prevailed 1-0 in a match of squandered chances, including a Wout Weghorst miss from the spot.