The last Bundesliga match of the year
It’s the 333rd Bundesliga match of this calendar year and it’s the last game in the top flight of 2021 as 1. FC Köln await VfB Stuttgart on Sunday. It is a match-up of two teams from the bottom half of the table, although the Geißböcke could still manage to move into single figures with a win.
The Rhinelanders are currently in tenth place. 22 points is a yield that does not allow for more than mediocrity. However, they are only two points behind the international places, while the relegation zone is five points away. The Cologne team should therefore be looking upwards rather than downwards.
The Swabians are nestled in the red zone. Stuttgart have only 17 points and are only one goal above the relegation zone. Therefore, the Effzeh is certainly favoured in this match and the betting providers are predicting a relatively clear home victory in the duel between Cologne and VfB Stuttgart.
VfB have been very successful in recent weeks and therefore Pellegrino Matarazzo’s team is a team that is always very difficult to predict.
Cologne – Statistics & current form
There have been many header specialists in the Bundesliga. Horst Hrubesch or Dieter Hoeneß were among them. Anthony Modeste must perhaps also be mentioned in this row. The Frenchman scored seven of his ten goals in the first half of the season with his head. That is the best value since such data was first recorded in 1992.
High morale of the billy goats
The Effzeh is perhaps the team with the best morale in the top flight. The Geißböcke scored twelve of their 22 points after falling behind. They also scored a good 76 percent of their goals in the second half. Therefore, in the match Cologne vs. VfB Stuttgart, it might be worthwhile to check the odds on some goals scored by the Rhinelanders in the second period.
Once again, it was a victory for morale last weekend as 1. FC Köln prevailed 3-2 in Wolfsburg. Anthony Modeste initially levelled the first deficit to make it 1-1 at the break. After the change, Steffen Baumgart’s team fell behind again, but turned the match into a victory after goals from Mark Uth and Anthony Modeste again.
Timo Horn, Dejan Ljubicic and Tomas Ostrak are injured or stricken and will not be available. Ellyes Skhiri is ill and is also out. Mark Uth is a candidate for the starting eleven after his goal in Wolfsburg. There is still a question mark over Salih Özcan, who has recently been suffering from muscular problems.
Predicted line-up of Cologne:
Schwäbe – Schmitz, Kilian, Czichos, Hector – Özcan – Schaub, Kainz, Duda – Modeste, Uth – Coach: Baumgart
Last matches played by Köln:
1st Bundesliga
12/14 2021 – Vfl Wolfsburg 2 – 3 1. FC Köln
12/10 2021 – 1. FC Köln 0 – 2 Augsburg
12/04 2021 – Arminia Bielefeld 1 – 1 1. FC Köln
11/27 2021 – 1. FC Köln 4 – 1 Borussia Mönchengladbach
11/21 2021 – Mainz 05 1 – 1 1. FC Köln
VfB Stuttgart – Statistics & current form
It’s certainly not been a good season so far for VfB Stuttgart. No matter what the outcome of Sunday’s game, the Swabians will have fewer points on their account than in the first half of last season.
Positive tendency at VfB
Lately, however, there has been an upward trend, as Stuttgart have lost only one of their last four Bundesliga games and celebrated two victories. Without these victories against Mainz and in Wolfsburg, it would be even tighter than it already is. However, ahead of the first-round finale between Cologne and VfB Stuttgart, we dare to predict that the Swabians will have to tremble until the end of the season.
Last weekend they let themselves be badly shown up. The home game against FC Bayern started very well. The Munich team took a 1:0 lead just before the break. After the change, the game became increasingly one-sided. In the end, Stuttgart suffered a clear 5-0 defeat, especially in the second half, when they had no chance.
Once again, the offensive power was missing. That could also be the case on Sunday, because with Sasa Kalajdzic and Silas, the best scorers of last season are still out. In addition, keeper Fabian Bredlow, Roberto Massimo, Nikolas Nartey, Erik Thommy and Borna Sosa are still injured. Philipp Klement is in quarantine.
Predicted line-up of VfB Stuttgart:
Müller – Mavropanos, Anton, Ito – Karazor, Mola – Coulibaly, Endo, Mangala, Führich – Marmoush – Coach: Matarazzo
Last matches played by VfB Stuttgart:
1st Bundesliga
12/14 2021 – VfB Stuttgart 0 – 5 Bayern Munich
12/11 2021 – Vfl Wolfsburg 0 – 2 VfB Stuttgart
12/05 2021 – VfB Stuttgart 2 – 2 Hertha Berlin
11/26 2021 – VfB Stuttgart 2 – 1 Mainz 05
11/20 2021 – Borussia Dortmund 2 – 1 VfB Stuttgart
Cologne – VfB Stuttgart Direct comparison / H2H-balance
Round 100 duels have been played between 1. FC Köln and VfB Stuttgart so far. Both teams are veterans of the Bundesliga and played a large part of their club history in the first division. The direct comparison is relatively clear in favour of VfB with 40:35 victories. 25 duels ended in a draw.
Cologne has been a good place for VfB for years. The Swabians have not lost in the cathedral city for over 21 years. The Effzeh’s last home win came in October 2000, and the last encounter was in February this year. In Cologne, VfB Stuttgart won 1-0 after a goal by Sasa Kalajdzic.
Cologne – VfB Stuttgart Tip
In the last Bundesliga match of the year, 1. FC Köln will be looking to make up a few more places and jump into a single-digit position. That would make it possible to celebrate Christmas in a relaxed manner. It is clear that the Geißböcke will not become restless even after a possible deficit, because the Cologne team has won more than half of its points despite being behind.
Especially in the second half, the Effzeh is externally accurate. However, there has not been a home win against VfB since October 2000. Therefore, we would not place a blanket bet on a win for the home side between Cologne and VfB Stuttgart. However, we still see Steffen Baumgart’s team as the bottom line favourites.
But we don’t have enough money to bet on a home win. Stuttgart lost 0:5 against Bayern last time out, but before that they scored well. We are reluctant to bet on the outcome of the match, but we think that the Swabians will score and that Anthony Modeste may also add to his goal tally. Therefore, we have decided to play the betting odds on goals for both teams between Cologne and VfB Stuttgart.
