Darmstadt take Stuttgart defender on loan

VfB Stuttgart and newly promoted SV Darmstadt 98 confirmed a mutually beneficial loan arrangement ahead of next season yesterday. 

Shortly after buying the defensive prospect back from Swiss side St. Gallen, VfB Stuttgart have opted to loan 24-year-old central defender Matej Maglica out to newly promoted Bundesliga side SV Darmstadt 98 in order to give the returnee better playing prospects. The Hessian “Lilies” found themselves in need of some additional assistance in central defense after center back Patric Pfeiffer departed for Augsburg on a free.

Maglica found himself unlikely to earn much playing time on an oversized Swabian roster that featured 33 players. The Croat youth international also had only one Bundesliga appearance (as a sub in November of 2021) to his credit. VfB sporting director Fabian Wohlgemuth expressed the hope that Maglica would gain “regular playing practice” at his new location in a released statement accompanying the signing.

“In Matej Maglica, we get a player who was excellently trained at VfB Stuttgart and who drew attention to himself last season as a regular at St. Gallen,” Darmstadt sporting director Carsten Wehlmann added, “With his physical prerequisites and his abilities, he fits our requirement profile sought for the position.”

“Matej is a left-sided central defender with an extraordinary physical presence,” SV trainer Torsten Lieberknecht added, “He fits very well in our preferred basic formation. He will be able to develop further with us. I look forward to being able to help him in his next developmental steps.”

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