VfB Stuttgart
| 1-0 | Didavi | (66. Min) |
| 2-0 | Kostic | (78. Min) |
1. FSV Mainz 05
Florian Klein
Stats 
Daniel Ginczek in a duel during the game.
Successful battle for every meter
The Saturday evening game on match day 32 in the current Bundesliga season saw VfB Stuttgart play host to 1. FC Mainz 05 at the Mercedes-Benz Arena. On the day, Huub Stevens‘ men were the better side over the distance and earned themselves a 2-0 (0-0) for their unyielding efforts.
The VfB coach made two changes to his starting eleven from last weekend, with Antonio Rüdiger and Daniel Didavi beginning in place of Georg Niedermeier and Alexandru Maxim. Right from the outset, the noise in the Mercedes-Benz Arena was deafening, with the home fans roaring on their side passionately.
10:2 shots on goal for VfB
With the fans behind them, the Cannstatt Boys made a determined start. With just five minutes on the clock, Daniel Didavi got on the end of a Filip Kostic delivery, but was unable to turn his effort on goal. VfB’s number ten had another shot on goal just over ten minutes later, but this time the Mainz keeper was equal to the effort. Huub Stevens’ men were feisty, eager and willing to battle for every meter – just as Serey Dié insisted they would in the match programme.
Huub Stevens: "Firstly I’d really like to thank our fans – and not just for their support in this game! This game alone brings us nothing though, we still have two very important matches ahead of us. It was really a lot of fun to coach the lads through this game."
Post match comments
Following a brief dip in the action, the hosts had their next sight of goal. Firstly, Daniel Didavi crashed a shot off the inside of the post and then Daniel Schwaab narrowly failed to make contact with a corner delivery (35‘). Five minutes later Daniel Ginczek was unable to turn a deflected shot on goal and, in spite of VfB having notched up a 10:2 shots on goal tally, the sides went in at the break locked in stalemate.
Daniel Didavi and Filip Kostic on target
In the second half, VfB took control, but it took until the 58th minute before they could launch a serious attack, with Filip Kostic breaking on the left and getting a cross in, which was blocked away from the on-rushing Martin Harnik at the last gasp. But then the breakthrough was finally made by Daniel Didavi. The midfield man fired a shot from distance past the Mainz keeper to raise the roof on the Mercedes-Benz Arena and put VfB into a 1-0 lead (66‘).
Thirteen minutes later, Filip Kostic fired a deflected effort from Martin Harnik into the Mainz net, to again get the VfB fateful on their feet as stadium announcer Holger Laser declared the 2-0 score-line. The Cannstatt Boys never rested on their advantage and could have added a third through Daniel Ginczek (87’), but in the end, it was the three points that counted, with complete concentration on survival in the top-flight.
