STUTTGART
German champions
Champions League pedigree: Second round: 2003/04
THE LOW DOWN:
Stuttgart stunned German football by coming from nowhere to beat the likes of Schalke, Werder Bremen and Bayern Munich to the league title last season, their first national crown since 1992. Many critics argued they owed their success more to the failings of others than their own ability, yet that would be highly unfair on a young side - average age 25 - whose confidence and performance levels grew steadily throughout the campaign.
The jury is out whether the south-western club have strengthened in the summer marketplace. While they did well to replace the Valencia-bound keeper Timo Hildebrand with Nurnberg's Raphael Schafer, newcomers such as Brazilian attacker Ewerthon (ex-Zaragoza) and Turkish playmaker Yildiray Basturk (Hertha Berlin) could both be described as over the hill.
THE TECHNICAL AREA:
When Armin Veh took over from legendary Italian Giovanni Trapattoni in February 2006, it was assumed that the former was merely a caretaker, but he has defied his doubters. Veh's man-management and team-building skills would convince the Stuttgart movers and shakers to keep him for the long haul and within 15 months of his appointment, the ex-Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder had repaid them with Bundesliga silverware.
Veh prefers a slick, short-passing game and tactical flexibility. His team can switch effortlessly from 4-4-2 to 4-3-3 to 4-1-4-1 and while they are comfortable dictating the play, they are even more potent on the break, adept at launching lightning counter-attacks on either flank.
THE WOW FACTOR:
Stuttgart's youthful players are a joy to watch. The versatile utility player Serdar Tasci, goal scoring midfielder Sami Khedira, the activity and ball-skills of Robert Hilpert on the right-flank and 'Super Mario' Gomez, an outstanding striker of Spanish origins, who was recently voted Germany's Footballer of the Year for 2007, a reward for 14 league goals last season and a goal on his debut for the Nationalmannschaft.
The Mexican duo of right-back Ricardo Osorio and midfield workhorse Pavel Pardo are also key performers. On arriving a year ago, a widespread view was that the Hispanic pair would struggle to adapt to the hustle and bustle of the Bundesliga, yet the sceptics have been proved wrong.
The central defensive tandem of Portugal's Fernando Meira and Frenchman Mathieu Delpierre was by common consent the best in Germany last term, mixing athleticism, muscle and intelligence. Delpierre damaged a tendon in his right knee in pre-season, so he may not reach peak fitness for a while yet. His place should go to the versatile Tasci or Gledson, a Brazilian bought from Hansa Rostock.
THE BIG BUY:
Stuttgart smashed their record transfer fee by spending £5.7million on Shakhtar Donetsk's Romanian frontrunner Ciprian Marica. Previously with Dinamo Bucharest, the 21-year-old had been linked with Premier League sides Derby County and Manchester City.
Marica, capped 15 times for Romania, is robust, mobile, good in the air and has fine technical ability too. He has won league titles and domestic cups in the Ukraine and Romania.
THE TENDER SPOT:
Experience of the Champions League is thinly spread in these parts. Only Fernando Meira, Brazilian striker Cacau, Basturk and Ewerthon have tasted the continent's showcase competition and this lack of nous may prove damaging.
Given that Gomez and Marica are the first-choice strike pairing, questions have to be asked as to how long Cacau and Ewerthon will put up with the role of bench warming partners.
HOT GOSSIP:
Former Aston Villa midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger was the subject of plenty of transfer speculation during the summer, but he signed an extension to his deal at Stuttgart to confirm his commitment.
Try as they might, Juventus could not prise away Fernando Meira in the off-season. Both the Stuttgart management and their skipper insist the interest from Serie A had not turned his head, but they may return with a renewed bid in January
IDEAL LINE UP:
Schafer, Boka, Tasci, Meira, Osorio, Pardo, Hitzlsperger, Hilbert, Khedira, Gomez, Marica
THE VERDICT:
They may be raw, but Stuttgart have the talent, organisation and fearlessness to make the knock-out phase at least.
German champions
Champions League pedigree: Second round: 2003/04
THE LOW DOWN:
Stuttgart stunned German football by coming from nowhere to beat the likes of Schalke, Werder Bremen and Bayern Munich to the league title last season, their first national crown since 1992. Many critics argued they owed their success more to the failings of others than their own ability, yet that would be highly unfair on a young side - average age 25 - whose confidence and performance levels grew steadily throughout the campaign.
The jury is out whether the south-western club have strengthened in the summer marketplace. While they did well to replace the Valencia-bound keeper Timo Hildebrand with Nurnberg's Raphael Schafer, newcomers such as Brazilian attacker Ewerthon (ex-Zaragoza) and Turkish playmaker Yildiray Basturk (Hertha Berlin) could both be described as over the hill.
THE TECHNICAL AREA:
When Armin Veh took over from legendary Italian Giovanni Trapattoni in February 2006, it was assumed that the former was merely a caretaker, but he has defied his doubters. Veh's man-management and team-building skills would convince the Stuttgart movers and shakers to keep him for the long haul and within 15 months of his appointment, the ex-Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder had repaid them with Bundesliga silverware.
Veh prefers a slick, short-passing game and tactical flexibility. His team can switch effortlessly from 4-4-2 to 4-3-3 to 4-1-4-1 and while they are comfortable dictating the play, they are even more potent on the break, adept at launching lightning counter-attacks on either flank.
THE WOW FACTOR:
Stuttgart's youthful players are a joy to watch. The versatile utility player Serdar Tasci, goal scoring midfielder Sami Khedira, the activity and ball-skills of Robert Hilpert on the right-flank and 'Super Mario' Gomez, an outstanding striker of Spanish origins, who was recently voted Germany's Footballer of the Year for 2007, a reward for 14 league goals last season and a goal on his debut for the Nationalmannschaft.
The Mexican duo of right-back Ricardo Osorio and midfield workhorse Pavel Pardo are also key performers. On arriving a year ago, a widespread view was that the Hispanic pair would struggle to adapt to the hustle and bustle of the Bundesliga, yet the sceptics have been proved wrong.
The central defensive tandem of Portugal's Fernando Meira and Frenchman Mathieu Delpierre was by common consent the best in Germany last term, mixing athleticism, muscle and intelligence. Delpierre damaged a tendon in his right knee in pre-season, so he may not reach peak fitness for a while yet. His place should go to the versatile Tasci or Gledson, a Brazilian bought from Hansa Rostock.
THE BIG BUY:
Stuttgart smashed their record transfer fee by spending £5.7million on Shakhtar Donetsk's Romanian frontrunner Ciprian Marica. Previously with Dinamo Bucharest, the 21-year-old had been linked with Premier League sides Derby County and Manchester City.
Marica, capped 15 times for Romania, is robust, mobile, good in the air and has fine technical ability too. He has won league titles and domestic cups in the Ukraine and Romania.
THE TENDER SPOT:
Experience of the Champions League is thinly spread in these parts. Only Fernando Meira, Brazilian striker Cacau, Basturk and Ewerthon have tasted the continent's showcase competition and this lack of nous may prove damaging.
Given that Gomez and Marica are the first-choice strike pairing, questions have to be asked as to how long Cacau and Ewerthon will put up with the role of bench warming partners.
HOT GOSSIP:
Former Aston Villa midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger was the subject of plenty of transfer speculation during the summer, but he signed an extension to his deal at Stuttgart to confirm his commitment.
Try as they might, Juventus could not prise away Fernando Meira in the off-season. Both the Stuttgart management and their skipper insist the interest from Serie A had not turned his head, but they may return with a renewed bid in January
IDEAL LINE UP:
Schafer, Boka, Tasci, Meira, Osorio, Pardo, Hitzlsperger, Hilbert, Khedira, Gomez, Marica
THE VERDICT:
They may be raw, but Stuttgart have the talent, organisation and fearlessness to make the knock-out phase at least.
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