TSG come away empty-handed in derby
Personnel and tactics:
Sebastian Hoeness made just one change to the side that defeated VfL Wolfsburg 3-1 last weekend, with Dennis Geiger starting on the right wing in place of Christoph Baumgartner. Oliver Baumann took his usual place in goal, with Pavel Kadeřábek, Chris Richards, Kevin Vogt and David Raum forming a four-man defensive line in front of him. Diadie Samassékou and Florian Grillitsch started in central midfield, with Geiger and Sargis Adamyan lining up on the wings. Ihlas Bebou and Andrej Kramarić formed a striking partnership up front.
Hoeness made two changes in the 57th minute, with Kevin Akpoguma and Georginio Rutter coming on to replace Samassékou and Kadeřábek. Kramarić moved back into midfield and Rutter slotted in up front. Akpoguma took up Kadeřábek's role on the right side of the defence. Twelve minutes later, TSG again made a double substitution: Munas Dabbur came on for Bebou and Bruun Larsen replaced Geiger. Then, in the 83rd minute, Sebastian Rudy entered the field of play to replace Adamyan.
Moment of the match:
Ihlas Bebou hitting the bar in the 17th minute: the striker worked space to shoot in the box with a quick turn of the shoulders only to see his close-range effort denied by the woodwork. Not long after this big chance for TSG, Kempf scored the opener for Stuttgart in what turned out to be a decisive momentum shift.
Number of the game: 3
Jacob Bruun Larsen's late goal to make it 3-1 was his third of the season in the Bundesliga. The Dane is now Hoffenheim's leading scorer in the current campaign.
Line-ups:
TSG Hoffenheim: Baumann – Kadeřábek (57, Akpoguma), Vogt, Richards, Raum – Samassékou (57, Rutter), Grillitsch – Geiger (69, Bruun Larsen), Adamyan (83, Rudy) – Bebou (69, Dabbur), Kramarić
VfB Stuttgart: Müller – Mavropanos, Anton, Kempf – Coulibaly, Karazor, Sosa – Mangala (76, Nartey), Endo – Führich – Marmoush (76, Klimowicz)
Goals: 1-0 Kempf (18), 2-0 Mavropanos (60), 3-0 Massimo (81), 3-1 Bruun Larsen (84)
