After the short winter break, SpVgg Greuther Fürth want to build on the delicate upward trend before Christmas in their home match against VfB Stuttgart on Saturday – with a returnee in the centre of defence and a new signing for the attack.
The last two home games of the 2021 calendar year have been encouraging for the Kleeblatt: Both the 1-0 win against Union Berlin, the first Bundesliga home win in the club’s history, and the 0-0 draw against Augsburg saw them keep a clean sheet at the back. It is precisely this new-found defensive stability that the promoted team now wants to demonstrate in 2022. High hopes in this context are linked to the return of Nick Viergever. The 32-year-old, signed from PSV Eindhoven at the end of August last year, should ensure even more compactness. The central defender, who has risen directly to the position of head of defence, played his last of seven Bundesliga games so far on 30 October in the 1-3 defeat at Freiburg, where he injured his ankle and has been absent ever since. Just in time for the start of the second half of the season, the Dutchman is now set to make his comeback. “I’m glad that Nick is back, he coped very well with the training days and raised our level as far as the defensive unit is concerned,” Stefan Leitl reported at the press conference on Friday. The coach left it open as to who will defend alongside the veteran: “With Nick, Sebastian Griesbeck and Maximilian Bauer, we have three players who can currently play this position. “
Gideon Jung is also basically a candidate for the centre of defence. In the first leg in Stuttgart, when Fürth suffered a nasty 5-1 defeat at the start of the Bundesliga, last summer’s new signing played his only Bundesliga game for the Kleeblatt so far before suffering a serious meniscus injury during the warm-up in the first home game against Bielefeld. “We’re a bit further ahead in terms of training intensity,” Leitl is pleased to say, “he’s playing in smaller games as a neutral and is coping quite well with the sessions.” That nourishes the head coach’s “hope and confidence that we might be able to integrate him completely next week.” Against VfB, however, the 27-year-old defensive midfielder will certainly still be absent – just like the long-term injured Marius Funk (serious knee injury), Robin Kehr (cruciate ligament and meniscus injury) and Jessic Ngankam (cruciate ligament tear). Also missing will be Justin Hoogma (COVID-19), Abdourahmane Barry (thigh knock) and Adrian Fein, who is currently off training due to negotiations with other clubs.
New signing Pululu not yet an option for the starting eleven
Directly in the squad, meanwhile, will be Afimico Pululu, whose signing from FC Basel was announced by Spielvereinigung on Friday. “Afi, as he is nicknamed, is a very talented young player who has great dynamism and can break up one-on-one situations well,” said Leitl, praising the 22-year-old, who has signed a contract at Fürth until 2024. “He can play on the wing – meaning as a winger or outside midfielder – as well as in the centre of attack.” Against the Swabians, Leitl clarifies, “he is certainly not an option from the start because he hasn’t played for a long time. But I want him to be there so that he also gets to know the routines.” The 44-year-old does not rule out the possibility of a wild card: “If we need him tomorrow, then he will certainly have enough strength to give us another push and help us steer the game in the right direction.
Leitl: “This is a home game that we can definitely win “
Getting things going in the right direction means: The second Bundesliga home win of this season and in the club’s history should come against Stuttgart. “This is a home game that we can definitely win,” Leitl announces – and adds afterwards: “If we bring our game onto the pitch, if we play very compactly and if we create good ball wins.” Against an opponent who, according to the Munich native, “actually has all the elements you need to be successful in the Bundesliga: they have technically skilled players, they have an unbelievable number of fast, dynamic players and good one-on-one players.” His conclusion: “This is certainly not a team that would be in 16th place in a normal course of a season with slightly fewer injuries, but has significantly more quality.” But also one that “has always left a lot of gaps in the past. “
With VfB already twelve points behind and thus in 16th place for relegation, the coach of the team at the bottom of the table is currently less concerned with the table than with his team’s performance in the second half of the season: “Of course we want to be better than in the first half of the season,” in which Fürth only picked up five points. “We have set ourselves that goal and we are all convinced of it,” Leitl explains. A win at the start of the second half of the season – and the foundation for a better record would be laid straight away.
