VfB Stuttgart won 3-0 (1-0) against Hamburger SV in the first leg of the relegation play-offs. Ex-HSV player Josha Vagnoman contributed a goal.
Stuttgart - Of all things. Josha Vagnoman, of all people, played a decisive role in VfB Stuttgart beating Hamburger SV 3-0 (1-0) in the relegation first leg. He himself hoped last Sunday to get past the reunion with his former club. "But that's football," said the right-back after the final whistle. "That's the story," Vagnoman continued.
And part of that story was that he played a strong game. First and foremost because of his goal to make it 2-0: Führich served Enzo Millot on the left side of the field with a very fine foot, who gave the ball inside to Vagnoman, who in turn shot in ice-cold. Regardless of his goal, the Hamburg native, who moved from the Elbe to the Neckar before the season, played a decent game. In the first half, Vagnoman showed the overview and sent Serhou Guirassy into the lane, who then ran alone to Hamburg's goalkeeper Heuer Fernandes and failed.
VfB coach Hoeneß impressed by Guirassy
Guirassy showed an unfortunate performance for long stretches anyway. In the 27th minute, he missed a penalty, missing the chance to make it 2-0. In total, the striker made two mistakes, which he later made up for: Borna Sosa serves a corner and Guirassy put the ball with his head precisely into the corner to make it 3-0 (54th).
A reaction from the attacker that impressed his coach Sebastian Hoeness: "I also told him directly that I think it's amazing how he handled the first half. I think there are players you don't see anymore. They then leave the pitch and played a very weak game. And Serhou scored a very important goal for us. That's why I was happy. It was also important for him to score that goal in order to leave the game positive."
VfB man Josha Vagnoman is holding back on his celebrations against his former club Hamburger SV. © Julia Rahn/IMAGO
HSV coach Tim Walter doesn't want to give up despite hearty defeat against VfB
Incidentally, Konstantinos Mavropanos scored the first goal for VfB after no less than 45 seconds. The Greek international is likely to have played a major role in VfB keeping their nerve in the drama of relegation and partly outplaying HSV. However, the fair has not yet been completely read, after all, there is still a return match in Hamburg's Volkspark. "We will not give up," HSV coach Tim Walter immediately made clear. VfB coach Hoeneß stepped on the euphoria ahead of the second leg on Monday (20.45 CET/Sat.1/Sky): "It's half-time and no game has ever been decided. We have to be very focused and play really well again."