Jupp Heynckes Looking Forward to BVB Clash After ‘Intense & Dramatic’ Win in Stuttgart

Bayern Munich manager Jupp Heynckes has said that it is “unbelievable” that VfB Stuttgart don’t have more points this season after their spirited display against the reigning Bundesliga champions on Saturday.

Thomas Müller scored the only goal of the game at the Mercedes-Benz Arena, however, former Stuttgart goalkeeper Sven Ulreich walked away as the hero after ensuring all three points returned to Bavaria with a last-minute penalty save.

The match had everything: it was highly interesting, intense and dramatic,” Heynckes told the club website after their final Bundesliga game of 2017. 

“It’s unbelievable VfB don’t have more points. Our players must recover and clear their heads, then I’m confident we can step up our game against Borussia Dortmund.”

VfB Stuttgart v FC Bayern Muenchen - Bundesliga

Stuttgart’s spirited performance arguably left them deserving of a point. However, just like with results in recent weeks, their impressive displays on the pitch aren’t showing in their points tally in the Bundesliga table.

The match reflected our last few weeks. We always come close but we haven’t taken many points,” Hannes Wolf, Stuttgart’s promising young manager, said.

“I don’t blame Chadrac Akolo [for missing the penalty]. It just happens sometimes if you accept responsibility. We’ve had a fantastic year, now we’re in a difficult situation before the second half of the season. But we’ll accept the challenge from 13 January.”


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Stuttgart 0-1 Bayern Munich: Visitors Survive Late Drama as Bundesliga Actions Ends for 2017

Bayern Munich have ended the first-half of their Bundesliga season in style with a hard-fought 1-0 win over VfB Stuttgart.

The Swabians impressive home form this season, which included a 2-1 win over Borussia Dortmund, wasn’t enough to keep Jupp Heynckes side at bay despite their spirited performance.

Robert Lewandowski had the chance to put the visitors in front in the opening minute of the game, his left-footed effort flying just wide of the post after pouncing on a mistake from former Bayern defender Holger Badstuber.

VfB Stuttgart v FC Bayern Muenchen - Bundesliga

Chadrac Akolo then had two chances to put the hosts in front. After seeing one speculative effort sail over the bar, Akolo forced Sven Ulreich into a smart save with a well-placed shot that was destined for the back of the net.

Clear-cut chances were at a premium throughout the first-half, with Bayern growing frustrated at Stuttgart’s solidity in defence. The hosts continued to offer a lot on the counter-attack also, with Berkay Özcan appearing to be Stuttgart’s most dangerous forward.

Corentin Tolisso saw a late first-half chance well saved by Ron-Robert Zieler, with a half-hearted effort from Mats Hummels amidst a goalmouth scramble proving to be the last real sighter of goal Bayern had in the opening 45 minutes.

VfB Stuttgart v FC Bayern Muenchen - Bundesliga

Stuttgart were forced to bring Polish centre-back Marcin Kami?ski into the fray early after the restart, replacing their injured striker, Simon Terodde, in a like-for-like change.

James Rodríguez was unable to trouble Zieler with a set-piece from just outside the penalty area, while Kingsley Coman and Jérôme Boateng saw powerful efforts tipped over the bar by the former Manchester United goalkeeper.

Second-half substitute Thomas Müller finally found a way past Zieler with just over 10 minutes to go, allowing the visitors to breathe easier in the closing stages of the game.

The German striker was fed the ball by Coman and after taking one touch to set himself, Müller sent a left-footed effort into the bottom corner of the net.

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On-loan Arsenal striker Takuma Asano saw a wild effort deflected over the bar in the search of an equaliser, while a powerful header from Badstuber could only sting the palms of Sven Ulreich.

Stuttgart were then given an avenue back into the game when Niklas Süle was adjudged – with the assistance of VAR – to have fouled Santiago Ascacibar in the penalty area. 

Chadrac Akolo was given the chance to rescue a point with the last kick of the game, however, his weak penalty was saved by Ulreich and the referee blew the final whistle once the ball was cleared.

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Paul Clement Denies Struggling Renato Sanches Set for Early Bayern Return

Swansea manager Paul Clement has denied all speculation linking the struggling Renato Sanches with an early return from his loan spell from Bayern Munich.

The 20-year-old has found life in the Premier League increasingly difficult, and after a series of poor performances the Swans had been understood to be considering cutting his loan spell short. A move which would leave Sanches in limbo as Bayern boss Jupp Heynckes does not want the midfielder back at the club, as per reporter Ezequiel Daray. 

Despite featuring for Swansea ten times so far this season, Sanches has failed to live up to expectations as he has completed just two full 90 minute league games. 

Although reports in Portugal suggest Sanches will return to Bayern much earlier than expected due to his poor form Clement insists that no such discussions have taken place, he told the ?BBC: There is no news.

“I haven’t had any specific communication with Bayern regarding Renato’s current situation, it’s just speculation.

Swansea City v Leicester City - Premier League

“Contractually, I believe he’s signed for us for the season, and there were no stipulations in there that he has to play this amount of games for him to stay for the full term. As far as I know he’s a player here for us for the season.”

Despite Swansea cemented at the bottom of the table and the midfielder omitted from the last two games, Clement is optimistic that Sanches can return to the form which saw him described as one of the best young players in Europe by Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola. 

He added: “He’s been out of the last two squads, he’s not very happy.

“Renato is a very good player and I do believe that he can make a contribution for us. But for him to do that he needs to start playing up to his potential. When he does that he’ll feature a lot more.

“[We’ve got to] show him that you have belief in him and the obvious answer would be that you have to keep him involved in the squads, but I’m more believing that behind the scenes you’ve got to work with him.

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“Clearly his confidence is low, but it was low when he came here. You would have hoped that he would have gone back up to a good level, but it’s taken more time than we all would have hoped.”

Sanches will be desperately hoping for a quick resurgence in form as if his loan spell is cut short and Heynckes sees no way for the 20-year-old to force his way into the Bayern side he could be left to sit on the sidelines for the remainder of the season as he is only able to play for two clubs in one campaign. 

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REVEALED: Why Renato Sanches Can’t Play for Another Club Even if Swansea Did Cut Loan Deal Short

?Renato Sanches is unable to join a second club on loan if Bayern Munich recall him from Swansea City – all because of a brief Bayern cameo at the start of the season.

Media outlets like the ?Sun had alleged that the German giants could look to bring the Portugal international back to the Bundesliga if the Swans opt to cut their losses and prematurely end his season-long loan spell in South Wales.

However, Sanches is caught between a rock and a hard place over whatever decision he makes as he won’t be able to play for another club on loan in the second half of the season.

Why? Because the 20-year-old has already played for two teams this season thanks to a six-minute substitute appearance for Bayern in the DFL Super Cup victory over Borussia Dortmund on 5th August.

FIFA rules stipulate that a player cannot play for more than two clubs during a season and, given that Sanches has made 10 appearances for Swansea this term as well as his brief period on the field for Bayern, he wouldn’t be able to play elsewhere.

Sanches has found himself out of favour at the Liberty Stadium in recent matches as his shock loan switch to Swansea has gone down like a lead balloon thus far.

The ex-Benfica starlet has failed to light up the Premier League with the Swans and has only played five minutes of the past three league games for Paul Clement’s side.

The Swansea manager has denied that he will send Sanches back to Germany over his poor form in south Wales, and it may be in Sanches’ best interests to stay where he is.

He is unlikely to earn much game time with Jupp Heynckes’ table toppers and, whilst Swansea are struggling in England’s top flight, he would get more minutes there than at the Allianz Arena.

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Picking the Best Potential Bayern Munich Lineup to Face Stuttgart on Saturday

After seeing Jupp Heynckes flirt with the idea of a new formation on Wednesday, where Bayern secured a 1-0 victory over FC Köln, the reigning Bundesliga champions will likely stick to their guns in their final league match before the winter break.

With a trip to Stuttgart set for Saturday afternoon, the Bavarians will be keeping one eye on their DFB-Pokal match against Borussia Dortmund next week when it comes to team selection.

Here’s who Heynckes could pick at the Mercedes-Benz Arena:

Goalkeeper

  • Ulreich

    Ulreich26

Sven Ulreich will likely return to the Bayern starting lineup on Saturday, with the 29-year-old overcoming a recent injury to face his former club.

Defence

  • Kimmich

    Kimmich32

  • Boateng

    Boateng17

  • Martínez

    Martínez8

  • Alaba

    Alaba27

Although Bayern will be looking to rest players ahead of Der Klassiker next week, Stuttgart’s impressive home record this season means some regular first-team stars will be featured on Saturday. 

Joshua Kimmich could return to the starting lineup along with Javi Martínez, while Jérôme Boateng and David Alaba should retain their spot in the first-team.

Midfield

A midfield five for Bayern Munich would see Sebastian Rudy acting as their deep-lying playmaker. 

Arturo Vidal will help break up Stuttgart’s dangerous counter-attacks, while James Rodríguez will offer the visitors more going forward.

Kingsley Coman could be drafted back in to offer Bayern more pace going on the wings, while Thomas Müller should retain his place on the right flank.

Forwards

  • Lewandowski

    Lewandowski9

With Bayern already sniffing out the transfer market for a new striker to support Robert Lewandowski, this could be Heynckes’ last Bundesliga match where the Polish forward doesn’t walk into the side. 

Already with 21 goals this season, which included one in the DFL-Supercup, Lewandowski is once again scoring goals for fun and looks set to be crowned as the league’s top goalscorer in May.

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