After relegation rivals Werder Bremen and St Pauli both won yesterday, it was imperative that Wolfsburg got something from one of the division’s tougher away fixtures.
Stuttgart had lost just one of their prior 11 Bundesliga home matches, and a fast start here had them well on their way to further success.
Ermedin Demirovic and Chris Fuhrich were both denied by Kamil Grabara in the early stages, before Die Schwaben found their breakthrough just after the 20-minute mark.
Fuhrich breezed past Sael Kumbedi on the left before squaring the ball, which could only be cleared as far as Deniz Undav via a deflection, and the Stuttgart striker made no mistake in lashing home from close range.
Wolfsburg were reeling, and by the half-hour mark, the game looked beyond them. Stuttgart doubled their lead through Jamie Leweling, who tucked home at the far post after being found by Fuhrich’s cutback.
And Leweling soon had his second of the game and seventh of the Bundesliga campaign, spectacularly beating Grabara with a powerful half-volley after yet another botched Wolfsburg clearance.
Three goals down at the break, damage limitation was the order of the day for Die Wolfe following the restart, and a triple substitution - combined with Stuttgart understandably dropping their intensity - helped them stop the bleeding.
There were still lucky escapes, as Grabara denied Bilal El Khannouss at his near post before clawing a cross away from the same player with Demirovic waiting behind him.
Grabara was again called into action late on to deny Demirovic, and though the contest ultimately petered out, further damage was inflicted on the beleaguered visitors when Nikolas Nartey’s late chip took a deflection to beat Grabara.
Wolfsburg sit three points adrift of definite safety, and have now failed to win their last five away games, conceding 17 goals in total. Stuttgart, meanwhile, have netted 3+ goals in seven of their last 10 outings, and have opened up a provisional five-point gap over the chasing pack inside the top four.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Chris Fuhrich (Stuttgart)
