Number zero between FC and VfB
No Sasa Kalajdzic, no goals: Most of the talk during the already eventful 0-0 draw between 1. FC Köln and VfB Stuttgart was about someone who wasn’t there at all. Because Stuttgart’s top scorer was not in the squad. The Austrian, who is likely set to join English Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers, was absent at his own request. Instead, for the first time in the starting XI: newcomer Luca Pfeiffer, who emerged as a central figure at number zero on Sunday afternoon.
Three days after reaching the Conference League group stage, FC are still unbeaten in the league but have retained a draw for the third consecutive season. VfB also drew for the third time on Matchday 4, but lost the other game and are therefore still winless. On Sunday, the Swabians were closer to success, but fell short again and again due to excellent Cologne goalkeeper Marvin Schwäbe. And on the red card against Pfeiffer (56th). Because he was so upset about this, among other things, VfB coach Pellegrino Matarazzo also saw yellow and red (72nd).
« We came to the conclusion that there was no point in taking him. Because he doesn’t feel free enough in his head to play on the pitch today, » Matarazzo said on Dazn about the match. absence of Kalajdzic. Ex-Darmstadt player Pfeiffer got his first start but his debut ended prematurely after Timo Hübers kicked him in the ankle. In the fourth match, the Cologne team benefited for the third time from the sending off of an opponent, but despite being outnumbered by more than half an hour, they failed to achieve their second victory of the season.
Number zero against Stuttgart: Cologne complains of several injuries
Cologne manager Steffen Baumgart made five changes to his starting XI after a midweek 3-0 win in the second leg of the play-off at Fehérvár FC. Nevertheless, the guests looked much fresher at the start and had three good chances in the first five minutes through Wataru Endo after 22 seconds, Silas (4th) and Konstantinos Mavropanos (5th). The Cologne team also had to endure two injuries early on. Mathias Olesen had to leave the field after 17 minutes, Julian Chabot played until the 52nd minute despite being injured after just four minutes with a bandage on his head which was taped several times. Another left (Site notre bureau spécialisé) injury finally stopped him.
Cologne’s savior before the break was Schwäbe, who made two excellent saves against Silas (22nd / 38th). FC also had two huge chances to take the lead, but captain Jonas Hector, after a free kick from Ondrej Duda, went completely unnoticed ten yards in the middle of the goal (37th) and Mavropanos knocked his head down turban by Chabot. line (45′).+2). The second half started with the next chances for Silas – and the next saves for Schwäbe (48./49). Then Pfeiffer rightly saw red, but that didn’t change much in the broken game as VfB held up well shorthanded and the tired Cologne side didn’t do enough shorthanded.
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