Hoeness: “We know what Atlético represents”

“We know what Atlético represents,” Sebastian Hoeness said ahead of VfB Stuttgart’s match against Atlético Madrid, scheduled for Tuesday in the third round of the Champions League.

Hoeness called Atlético a team that “has marked European football” and ranked Diego Pablo Simeone among the great coaches of recent years. He said Simeone’s career was beyond dispute, praising a style driven by “fire and passion” that has not faded with time. Hoeness also put him on the same level as Carlo Ancelotti, whom he had the chance to face in another season.

Asked about Thomas Müller’s description of Atlético as “the hooligans of Europe”, Hoeness said he did not need that analysis to understand how his opponents play. “Anyone who has followed European football must have seen Atlético matches. So we know what to expect,” he said. He also called the Madrid club one of the best in Europe and described them as an exciting team with exceptionally talented individuals. “We want to test ourselves against Atlético, knowing they are in excellent form,” he added.

The coach said Stuttgart approached the fixture with ambition: his players, he explained, were excited by a match that had seemed out of reach for a long time. The team is in a good position and wants to improve it by taking points against Atlético. To match their opponents’ customary intensity, Hoeness wants his players to bring comparable energy while keeping a cool head and avoiding provocation.

The match comes after Stuttgart’s defeat to Hamburg last weekend. Hoeness blamed that loss on a lack of clinical finishing, saying his side had controlled the game: “When you control a match, you can expect to win it or at least get a point. We have to be more clinical.” He also announced that Maximilian Mittelstädt was returning to the squad after suffering a cut to his heel. The defender could be in contention to start, but had only just returned to training with the group.