Stuttgart keeping it moving

"Keep active! Keep moving!" shouted VfB Stuttgart coach Hannes Wolf to his players after Takuma Asano had given the Swabians the lead in an away match for the first time this season.

Although Asano's first Bundesliga goal was ultimately facilitated by an error from Hannover goalkeeper Philipp Tschauner, the initial attack came as a result of precisely what Wolf was demanding – constant alertness and movement from his players, both defensively and offensively.

When Hannover striker Martin Harnik picked up the ball just outside the center-circle, he was immediately surrounded by three Stuttgart shirts, forcing him to lose possession.

Alert at right-back, Andreas Beck quickly darted inside to take over and immediately spotted the opportunity to drive forward. When he was fouled, the ball fell to Genter and such was the pace of Stuttgart's transition that the former Wolfsburg man had time to shoot from distance.

Hannover react

Whether André Breitenreiter had also overheard Wolf's first-half instructions, we'll never know, but it was a different Hannover side which took to the field in the second half. The hosts abandoned their attempt to combat Stuttgart's innovative 3-2-2-2-1 formation and began to play their own game.

"We wanted to match them like for like," revealed Breitenreiter post match. "But we weren't able to implement it and had to find a different solution."

The change had the desired effect, with Wolf admitting that "we weren't as aggressive in our pressing in the second half" but nevertheless insisting that he was satisfied with both the performance and the result. "Before tonight we had zero points away from home," he said. "Now we have one."

One more point which keeps Stuttgart active and moving in the Bundesliga.