Matarazzo is under no illusions as to the task awaiting his Stuttgart side when they face FC Bayern Munich at the Mercedes-Benz Arena this Saturday (kick-off 15:30 CET). “Bayern are one of the best teams in Europe, if not the best, and appear to be cruising through the Champions League group stage at the moment,” said the VfB boss. “We’re looking forward to testing ourselves against such opponents.”
The 42-year-old says his team will need to produce a “combative and attacking” performance to get a positive result against the record German champions. “We’re looking for a bold approach,” he added. “We need to put everything into it and try to play our best football. We’re focussing on our strengths.”
Two of VfB’s most notable strengths so far this season have been their ability to maintain composure after falling behind and to keep fighting until the very end. Indeed, the Cannstatt boys have already collected six points from losing positions in 2020/21.
Nicolas Gonzalez’s knee ligament tear means Matarazzo will have to make at least one change to the side that played Hoffenheim last weekend. On a more positive note, Konstantinos Mavropanos, Clinton Mola, Lilian Egloff and Roberto Massimo have all returned to first-team training and could be involved on Saturday.