Although Stuttgart’s performance this Saturday was good from the start, for a long time it looked like a prolonged period of suffering. But with pure passion, the VfB players finally ended their drought impressively. Impressive for this was striker Sasa Kalajdzic, who spilled freely.
The fact that VfB Stuttgart and its supporters had not won a whole nine Bundesliga games made it clear just how much they had suffered recently. Including a bitter, late 1:2 at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim
With passion displayed over the full 90 minutes plus injury time, the Swabians overcame this drought on Saturday just as impressively as they did the fact that they were even trailing 2-0 at the start against Gladbach. Captain Wataru Endo, Chris Führich and match-winner Sasa Kalajdzic turned the tables.
And it was precisely Kalajdzic, who had been absent so often and for so long this season due to injuries and Corona, who was just as emblematic of VfB’s relief with his goal and extensive jubilation on the pitch as he was with his frank words in an interview with “Sky” after the final whistle.
“After this game we were all incredibly relieved, especially after the last two games where we gave the game away twice,” the striker, who has only featured seven times this season, elaborated initially. “But this time we told ourselves that if we take the lead, we won’t give it away. And the team did a great job today, we didn’t let ourselves get pushed into the back. And that’s why the victory is absolutely deserved today in my opinion. “
“I’ll take that one – and thank you “
The Austrian international, who scored 16 times in 33 games last season, commented on his decisive and cool 3:2 after an assist from Borna Sosa: “Then I knew: ‘I’m going to smash it in! Just take it, turn around, hit it – and thank you.” And he continued: “I just had to make use of it, especially because I didn’t score in the first half, but I don’t care anymore. I’m just happy that we’ve taken the game home now. “
And the fact that the 24-year-old Kalajdzic has scored both of his goals this season in his last three games was a direct reflection of his team’s improved performance in recent weeks: “We’ve seen recently that we can do it. And today we finally played really well, the fans were simply outstanding, they played a huge role and brought in so much energy. We then played ourselves into a flow and created chance after chance. This win was extremely important when you see that Augsburg won. We are somehow closer again now.”
Stuttgart, who had completely overturned a two-goal deficit in the Bundesliga for the first time since May 2012 (then 3-2 after 0-2 against VfL Wolfsburg), would now “know: ‘We did it.’ Throughout the games or the whole season, we were perhaps always afraid of winning. That’s why the victory was so important, so that the team knows: ‘Okay, we can do it!
Farewell in summer?
Finally, Kalajdzic, who joined VfB from Admira Wacker in the summer of 2019 and was promoted directly to the Bundesliga two years ago, commented on his own future. His contract only runs until 2023 – and the signs point to departure. His comment: “I don’t know now. I’ve read a bit about it. But I don’t really care, I just focus on the opponents. It’s just the kind of empty phrases that people use. And even if something were wrong, I wouldn’t say anything. But it’s nothing, I live day after day just to help this club.”
Kalajdzic only knows right now “that I want to give so much because I have received so much”. Above all, he is only pursuing the goal of “not getting relegated because we know we are good”. For the moment, he doesn’t care about the rest “in good Austrian language”.