Perhaps Huub Stevens is just what VfB Stuttgart needs -- or maybe the Dutch manager simply got that first-match lift which often follows their taking over clubs in deep trouble.
Back in charge following the unexpected resignation of Armin Veh, Stevens' saw his side get a huge goal from Carlos Greuzo and a fighting second half effort to produce a 4-1 victory at SC Freiburg Friday night. Martin Harnik had two goals and Timo Werner the other as the visitors snapped a three-match losing streak.
That was enough to lift Stuttgart off the bottom of the Bundesliga table, but not enough to carry them out of the relegation zone as they climbed to 16th place with 12 points. Freiburg, also on 12 points as are Hamburger SV, are in the same boat as Stuttgart but on this night the Breisgau-Brasilianer looked a distant second.
It was Stevens who took over a season ago and saved VfB from relegation; at the press conference which introduced him he suggested it had been a hard to accomplish a year ago and could be even harder this time around. Then, Stevens managed to find 12 points in the final 10 games of the season and steered the ship to safety. Three points Friday night will have the faithful thinking that he never should have left his post.
Gruezo's goal came on a superb 53rd minute strike from the top of the box after a Harnik shot was blocked by the Freiburg defense. It was the goal that not only put Stuttgart ahead but seemed also to be the tonic needed to awaken the side.
After Gruezo's goal, Roman Buerki had to save well from Moritz Leitner as VfB began playing with a level of attacking confidence that had been absent earlier. It would pay off with a commanding performance, and for a night at least, three successive scoreless efforts will be forgotten.
The complete payoff came in the two minutes when everything went wrong for Stefan Mitrovic. First the Freiburg defender was dispossessed on the halfway line, allowing Werner to get clean away from Leitner's pass. Werner went in alone on Buerki to slide the ball just inside the far, left post in the 68th minute.
When Stuttgart immediately attacked again, Mitrovic wound up as the last man trying to stop Harnik. He brought the VfB man down outside the box, and the result was a red card which left Freiburg a man short for the final 20 minutes. Harnik did not score from the resulting free kick but collected his second with 14 minutes left to finish the match as a contest.
The teams had traded goals in a wide-open first half that demonstrated the defensive frailties Stevens still must tackle if Stuttgart's improvement is to be more than illusory. In fact, Freiburg should have been in front in the 24th minute when VfB keeper Sven Ulreich spilled Marc Torrejon's shot at Sebastian Freis' feet, but the Freiburg striker contrived to power the ball past the right post.
The visitors then grabbed an unexpected lead when Antonio Ruediger headed on a corner kick and Harnik barely managed to remain onside before dipping to head in at the right post in the 31st minute.
Freiburg got level three minutes before the interval and there might have been a hint of blame on Ulreich, who appeared rooted to the VfB line when Vladimir Darida let fly from the top right. The shot nestled into the far corner as Ulreich moved both slowly and late.
Stuttgart was then fortunate to be level at the interval when Ulreich saved well from Jonathan Schmid only for the rebound to go to Felix Klaus. Klaus, however, smacked the crossbar with the net wide open. That miss may turn out to have been the moment when Stuttgart began to believe.
Saturday's program is headed by leaders Bayern Munich's visit to Hertha Berlin, while both Schalke and Bayer Leverkusen will be hoping to rebound from midweek Champions League defeats.
