Stuttgart relief as form returns

VfB Stuttgart may have lost all their three UEFA Champions League games and made a disappointing start to their German title defence, but their form is showing signs of recovery after they picked up a third domestic win in a row on Saturday.

Team work
A 1-0 weekend victory at German Cup holders and UEFA Cup contenders 1. FC Nürnberg ended a run of six competitive defeats away from home and put Stuttgart into eleventh place, only two points off the top six. Mario Gómez scored the only goal on 25 minutes and said: "We are delighted with the result although we did look a little shaky towards the end of the match. We deserved to win the game as the whole team worked hard together to take all three points." Fernando Meira added: "That was a success for the whole team. We battled hard for one another and were rewarded for our efforts. In our current situation it's expected that our opponents will have chances to score. In the coming weeks we will have to work hard on our understanding on the pitch."

'No easy match'
Armin Veh, whose side will attempt to get off the mark in Group E at Olympique Lyonnais on Wednesday, said: "This was no easy match today. Nürnberg and VfB have had similar problems with many injured players in a season after winning a trophy. Both sides had their chances. The win was very important for us, especially given that we lost against them three times last year. But I believe given the quality of their team - they will not be in relegation trouble at the end of the season."

Hopeful signs
That, however, is a concern for Nürnberg who lie in the bottom three. Still, there were hopeful signs. "We have finally played in a way we can be pleased with at home," said Andreas Wolf. Meanwhile, referring to coach Hans Meyer's birthday, captain Tomáš Galásek stated: "It was simply bad luck today. We would have really liked to give our coach a nice present of three points."