Stuttgart head coach offers up initial assessment of new signings Bilal El Khannouss and Badredine Bouanani

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VfB Stuttgart found themselves on the losing end of a spectacular SC Freiburg comeback on Saturday afternoon. Stuttgart head coach Sebastian Hoeneß understandably remained quite frustrated afterwards. It surely felt like a case of bad deja vu. The last time Hoeneß’ team visited Freiburg’s Europa Park Stadion in the league, Stuttgart memorably blew an early lead and ultimately lost by the exact same 3-1 scoreline. 

Hoeneß’ post-match comments nevertheless weren’t the exact mirror opposite of those from his Freiburg counterparts. Knowing full well that the season remains young, Hoeneß simply noted that his team needed to “play more courageously” and “put the opponent under more pressure“.

Stuttgart took the lead in the 20th-minute thanks to a super-slick back-heel finish from striker Ermedin Demirovic, yet weren’t able to add to their lead over the next hour-of-play. Hoeneß referenced a couple of chances from his team around the hour-mark at the post-match press conference. 

Matters got a bit more interesting when it came time for Hoeneß – who called upon club management to procure him new players following Nick Woltemade’s departure – to assess some of his new players. The VfB front office were able to secure the services of two North African internationals.

Deadline day attacking signings Bilal El Khannouss and Badredine Bouanani were immediately inserted into the starting XI. El Khannouss went the full 90 minutes as Hoeneß’ starting ten while Bouanani played 63 minutes on the right attacking flank.

“Bilal was involved in many successful situations and definitely gave us momentum,” Hoeneß said. “Badredine also played a decent game, but he certainly wasn’t as noticeable as Bilal.”

GGFN | Peter Weis