Bruno Labbadia strengthens Stuttgart’s blundering goalkeeper Florian Müller before the cup game in Paderborn. In the current situation, calm is required. Two newcomers should help in the relegation battle.
Stuttgart (dpa / lsw) – Bruno Labbadia would have liked to reveal the names of his newcomers at the press conference before training. The VfB Stuttgart coach then held back – and left the announcement to the media department. The Bundesliga soccer club signed midfielder Genki Haraguchi from 1. FC Union Berlin and offensive man Gil Dias from Benfica Lisbon on Monday. Two fresh forces are coming for the grueling relegation battle in which Labbadia would like to do without a goalkeeper discussion – and therefore nipped them in the bud right away.
“Flo is number one and it will stay that way for the time being,” said the VfB coach one day before the round of 16 in the DFB Cup at SC Paderborn on Tuesday (6 p.m. / Sky) about keeper Florian Müller. This failed again in the 2-1 defeat at RB Leipzig last Friday. Of course, Labbadia did not miss this. With all the sporting and financial worries of Stuttgart, he doesn’t want to open another construction site.
Labbadia left it open whether, like his predecessor Pellegrino Matarazzo in the cup, he will set up substitute goalkeeper Fabian Bredlow from the start. The 56-year-old explained that he hadn’t handled it that way in his career so far. And he wants to have the best staff in Paderborn. After all, East Westphalia is “a top team in the second division,” Labbadia warned. The fifth in the table is “very committed”, he emphasized. Paderborn’s coach Lukas Kwasniok had previously said that the outsider was looking forward to a “magical night” against VfB.
Stuttgart’s goalkeeper Müller had hesitated again in Leipzig instead of magic and looked bad when Dominik Szoboszlai scored a free kick from Hungary. In fan circles, this immediately brought some critics back onto the scene. Labbadia now demonstratively strengthened the 25-year-old’s back. “Players are allowed to make mistakes with me. Unfortunately, that’s part of football. We have to accept that,” said the veteran coach. “But it’s also important to keep strengthening players in certain situations.” He doesn’t believe in constantly making changes, says Labbadia.
“Especially with the goalkeeper position, I don’t change that immediately – even if someone makes a mistake,” said the coach. “I know how relegation battles work and how difficult it is.” It’s important to keep a “steady hand.” And probably also an eye for the big picture. Labbadia should do well to strengthen the existing staff in their key positions instead of criticizing them publicly. After all, he has to keep working with him.
The 74-time Japanese international Haraguchi will also support VfB from now on. He brings “excellent footballing qualities and an enormous wealth of experience to our team,” said sporting director Fabian Wohlgemuth about the 31-year-old, who signed a contract in Stuttgart until 2024. Before joining Union, Haraguchi had already played for Hertha BSC, Fortuna Düsseldorf and Hannover 96 in Germany.
The 26-year-old Dias is “a player who can be used flexibly on the flanks, with whom we react quickly to Tiago Tomás’ injury, but who is also a valuable addition to our squad in the longer term,” explained Wohlgemuth. The Portuguese received a contract until 2025.
