Having recovered from injury, summer signing Ameen Al-Dakhil made a positive impression on his first appearance for VfB Stuttgart, earning himself a high-five from head coach Sebastian Hoeneß when he was substituted off.
As planned, he enjoyed a 40-minute run-out against Ulm on Thursday afternoon in what was one of a number of positives VfB took from the friendly.
The second division side took the lead in the 25th minute via Aaron Keller’s unstoppable curling drive. VfB increased the pressure in the second half and equalised through Leonhard Münst – via an inviting cross from Pascal Stenzel – shortly after the hour mark (62’).
Reaction:
Head coach Sebastian Hoeneß: “We were committed from the off, we pressed well as a team and created a number of chances, especially in the second half. I’m pleased that Ameen Al-Dakhil got his first minutes on the pitch with us. We’ll continue to be patient with him as we build him up. He made a really good impression from his very first day here and we have full faith in him and his qualities.”
Ameen Al-Dakhil: “It felt really good to get my first minutes for VfB Stuttgart today. I haven’t been able to play for the last nine months due to my injury, which makes it all the nicer to have been out on the pitch again today. The coaching staff and the team have welcomed me wholeheartedly, and that’s made it easy for me to settle and feel at home in Stuttgart.”
Goals:
0-1 Aaron Keller (26')
1-1 – Leonhard Münst (62')
VfB line-up
1 Fabian Bredlow (60' – 21 Stefan Drljaca) – 2 Ameen Al-Dakhil (40' – 45 Anrie Chase) – 3 Ramon Hendriks – 5 Yannik Keitel (85' – 53 Luan Simnica) – 15 Pascal Stenzel (C) – 22 Thomas Kastanaras (56' – 19 Wahidullah Faghir) – 29 Anthony Rouault – 46 Samuele Di Benedetto (56' – 34 Efe Korkut) – 49 Lauri Penna – 50 Leonhard Münst – 55 Benjamin Boakye (79' – 56 Tino Kaufmann)