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Stuttgart will begin their European campaign at home against LaLiga outfit Celta Vigo. Sebastian Hoeneß’s side won their first two Bundesliga home games without conceding a goal, and they need another solid performance in front of their supporters tonight if they have to improve from last season’s Champions League campaign.
Since the game against St. Pauli, the biggest talking point regarding Hoeneß’s team selection has been the competition between captain Atakan Karazor and Chema Andrés. The summer signing from Real Madrid starts in the midfield once again. Fellow new signing Bilal El Khannouss gets another start after his first goal for the club on Friday, while Badredin Bouanani also gets a nod.
Celta Vigo have quite a few familiar faces for Bundesliga enthusiasts. Borja Iglesias, who scored in each of the last three league games, spent the second half of the 2023/24 season in the all-conquering Bayer Leverkusen team. During that time, MHPArena was one of the six stadiums Bayern’s loanee Bryan Zaragoza played in the Bundesliga. However, both will start the game on the bench as Claudio Giráldez makes a lot of changes in his starting lineup. Former Leipzig midfielder Ilaix Moriba starts in midfield.
Stuttgart: Nübel; Assignon, Jeltsch, Hendriks, Mittelstädt; Chema, Stiller; El Khannouss, Bouanani, Leweling; Demirovic ©
Celta Vigo: Radu; Rodriguez, Alonso, Starfelt; Mingueza, Moriba, Beltran, El Abdellaoui; Iago Aspas ©, Jutgla, Duran
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