VfB Stuttgart suffered a heavy 5-1 defeat at Bayern Munich in the opening match of the 64th Bundesliga season. The game turned into a clear debacle for Stuttgart after they had briefly managed to equalize.
VfB Stuttgart showed courage early on and had a great chance in the 12th minute when Tiago Tomás hit the crossbar. Bayern also struck the post through Michael Olise. The breakthrough came in the 21st minute when Dayot Upamecano scored the first goal of the new season for the hosts. For Bayern, it was the 20th time they have provided the first goalscorer of a Bundesliga season, a league record. After the break, VfB Stuttgart equalized in the 52nd minute through Josha Vagnoman. That joy was short-lived.
Bayern Munich decisively turned the match around in just five minutes. Michael Olise made it 2-1 for the hosts in the 55th minute. Just two minutes later, in the 57th, Josha Vagnoman unfortunately scored an own goal to make it 3-1. VfB never recovered from this double blow. Aleksandar Pavlovic (82nd) and Luis Diaz (90+2) completed the 5-1 scoreline. Joshua Kimmich was outstanding for Bayern, providing two assists and being named man of the match despite playing with a bleeding ankle wound.
Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer played his 600th competitive match for the club and started his 21st consecutive Bundesliga season, which is also a record. A special observer in the Allianz Arena was new Germany national team coach Jürgen Klopp. He watched the game officially alongside DFB president Bernd Neuendorf and assistant coach Peter Krawietz. Klopp announced plans to learn more about Bayern's processes. "I will be at Bayern's training ground on Sunday to meet players and simply learn about procedures. These will be important talks," Klopp said. When asked if he would also see Jamal Musiala, he replied: "Maybe even this evening."
The heavy defeat has immediate consequences for the league table. After one matchday, VfB Stuttgart sit in 18th and last place in the Bundesliga with 0 points and a goal difference of 1:5. In the early title race, they are already three points behind leaders Bayern Munich. The next chance to correct this comes on September 4th with a home game against 1. FC Köln, who are currently in 13th place. VfB's injury list remains long, including Dan Zagadou, Dennis Seimen, Jeremy Arevalo, Leo Sauer, Lorenz Assignon, and Luca Jaquez.
VfB Stuttgart must quickly process this heavy opening defeat. The focus now shifts entirely to preparing for the important home game against Köln. The team needs to become more defensively solid after conceding five goals in one match. The current league standing and the full fixture schedule can be viewed on our standings and fixtures pages. The return of some players from the current injury list would be a significant boost for the challenges ahead.
