bundesliga

Stuttgart finish 'unforgettable' Japan tour with another five-goal win

01.08.2024

Stuttgart have finished their tour of Japan with 10 goals in two games, and memories to last a lifetime.

VfB Stuttgart have finished their second tour of Japan with flying colours, beating Sanfrecce Hiroshima 5-2 after a 5-3 win over Kyoto Sanga.

The first match in Kameoka saw VfB come back from 3-0 down to win by two goals, with new signing Justin Diehl getting his second goal for the club in pre-season. The second game in Hiroshima was far more straightforward, and fans got to see summer arrival Nick Woltemade score his first in red and white.

Discussing the trip as a whole, head coach Sebastian Hoeneß said: “Our trip to Japan has been very positive. We shared some special experiences. A lot of us hadn’t been to Japan before. I’m very impressed by the people of Japan. We were given a wonderful welcome and it was a very valuable trip for us, one that I probably won’t forget for the rest of my life.”

Watch: Kyoto Sanga 3-5 Stuttgart highlights

The team also embarked on a number of fan, media and cultural activites such as sushi trips, a baseball match and getting out and about in Osaka. Among a group of former Stuttgart players travelling was Guido Buchwald, who spent six years in Japan as a player, coach and sporting director.

Rouven Kasper, head of marketing at VfB Stuttgart, said: "We are delighted to be the official ambassador of the Bundesliga in Japan this year and to present German football there together with our partners and the DFL partners.

"VfB has had good contacts in Japanese football for many years and has cultivated these in the past through activities of our football school, mutual visits by junior teams, media presence and coach training. Now we are taking the next logical step in the summer by doing part of our pre-season preparation in Japan."

See where other clubs are touring this summer

Recap the best of the tour below:

Safe arrival

The squad have returned to Stuttgart, and will now prepare for Athletic Bilbao next week.

Home bound

After ending their tour of Japan on a high with a 2-5 victory over Sanfrecce Hiroshima, Stuttgart now head back home where they will face Athletic Bilbao at the MHPArena on August 10.

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Watch: Highlights of Stuttgart's win to round out their tour

1:19

Watch: Stuttgart take on Japanese freestylers!

Stuttgart's most skilled players had some fun with Japan's finest freestylers.

Hoeneß on 'unforgettable' tour of Japan

“Our trip to Japan has been very positive. We shared some special experiences. A lot of us hadn’t been to Japan before. I’m very impressed by the people of Japan. We were given a wonderful welcome and it was a very valuable trip for us, one that I probably won’t forget for the rest of my life.”

Sebastian Hoeneß on the Hiroshima win

"It was as tough a game as we expected. I’m very pleased with our performance today – we were very focused. We could have led by more in the first half, but the fans were treated to a goal fest in the second. It was a great spectacle because, aside from the sporting aspect, today was about celebrating a festival of football. We’re proud to have been part of this ‘Peace Match’."

Japan tour ends with another victory

Stuttgart made it two from two on Thursday, and again scored five goals, this time against Sanfrecce Hiroshima in a 5-2 victory. Angelo Stiller, Ömer Beyaz, Thomas Kastanaras, Nick Woltemade and Moussa Cissé scored for last season's Bundesliga runners-up.

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Watch: VfB stars face back-to-back challenge

Alexander Nübel and Angelo Stiller took on some Germany vs Japan general knowledge with interesting results.

Adventure ahead

Demirovic is also excited for what lies ahead on the tour, including a visit to the Hiroshima Peace Museum. “I personally am really looking forward to this because I want to learn more about the culture and the city,” said the VfB striker. “It will be very special for all of us and have an effect on us going forward.” One aspect he's struggled with, however, has been the weather. “The weather conditions are extremely tough, I’ve never known anything like this before!”

Demirovic enjoying Japan

Stuttgart’s new signing Eden Demirovic has thoroughly enjoyed his time in Japan so far, telling the club’s official website: “It’s a very hospitable culture here and we’ve been incredibly well received. Anyone you meet on the street here, they show you so much respect and that’s really special. We spend all our time bowing to make sure we do the same as the people over here.”

Stiller arrives

After missing the first part of the Japan tour, midfielder Angelo Stiller has finally joined up with his teammates and is now looking forward to the rest of pre-season with the team, as he told the club website - “I’m pleased to be here now and to be working with my team-mates from now on...I was already tired before training but now it’s okay – the session was good". Speaking on the opportunity to visit Japan, he said - "“It’s important to soak up other cultures and be curious...”.

Goal scorer Diehl on the comeback

"The first half wasn't really our game, but thank god we got better in the second half. We corrected a couple of things and the coach told us what we can do better and then we were able to turn the game around."

Hoeneß isn't satisfied

"We are not satisfied with the first half, we should have acted more cleverly. The opponent pressed hard, our legs were not as fast as our heads wanted. We can learn a lot here. I am all the happier about the second half. The guys who came in were able to turn the game around. It was very important for us and our morale. For the spectators, who really created a great atmosphere here, it was a great game with lots of attacking action and great goals on both sides."

Sebastian Hoeneß on Kyoto Sanga win

Head coach Sebastian Hoeneß: "I would like to expressly thank you for the hospitality. The conditions we found here were great. Top pitch, top stadium, great crowd. I would also like to thank the opposing coach for training Wataru Endo and setting up the team so well today."

VfB kick-off with win

A superb second-half comeback from Stuttgart saw the Swabians kick start their tour of Japan with victory against Kyoto Sanga. Trailing 3-0 at the break, Sebastian Hoeneß's side scored five goals through Justin Diehl, Jamie Leweling, Thomas Kastanaras, Moussa Cissé and Luca Raimund to take the victory.

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Watch: Stuttgart start tour of Japan

Japanese academy graduate Anrie Chase on joining the first team

"Quite a few players were injured so I was fortunate enough to get the call-up. Training with them is at a really high level, and that enabled me to pick up a lot of important experience. The coaching staff have given me great support and I’m very grateful for that.”

Sebastian Hoeneß on Japan tour

"We are delighted to be here. It really is something special and we can’t wait to take on Kyoto Sanga on Sunday. The sporting benefit of our matches here in Japan is considerable. We have every respect for our opponents – the J.League is a good standard of football. We’re hoping that this trip will see us continue to progress as we make our way through pre-season.”

Jeff Chabot on training in Osaka

"The first session was fun. We have top conditions here. It was good to get the muscles moving again."

VfB set for day one of Japan tour

After a long and arduous flight, the VfB Stuttgart squad are set for the start of their Japan tour as coach Sebastian Hoeneß looks to use the conditions to help his team continue a positive pre-season.

Stuttgart squad

Fabian Bredlow, Stefan Drljaca, Alexander Nübel, Ramon Hendriks, Josha Vagnoman, Yannik Keitel, Angelo Stiller, Ermedin Demirovic, Wooyeong Jeong, Nick Woltemade, Frans Krätzig, Silas, Pascal Stenzel, Atakan Karazor, Justin Diehl, Jamie Leweling, Thomas Kastanaras, Dan-Axel Zagadou, Jeff Chabot, Anthony Rouault, Ömer Beyaz, Christopher Olivier, Efe Korkut, Maximilian Herwerth, Luca Raimund, Anrie Chase, Samuele Di Benedetto, Moussa Cisse

VfB land in Japan today

It's a case of one-in, one-out for Bundesliga clubs in Japan as Dortmund depart today and Stuttgart land. As you can see from the club's X account, there's a lot of equipment required for a tour as big as this...

Yannik Keitel on the trip to Japan

"I've actually always wanted to go to Japan, so I'm really looking forward to it. I hope that we get to experience a bit of the culture, but the main focus is of course on the training and the games."

A busy summer so far

After their best season in 17 years, Stuttgart have had a busy summer. Top scorer Serhou Guirassy and captain Waldemar Anton have headed to Borussia Dortmund, while versatile defender Hiroki Ito has moved to Bayern Munich. The arrivals are headlined by Ermedin Demirović from Augsburg and Jeff Chabot from Cologne.

The state of play

Ahead of leaving for Japan, Stuttgart have three friendlies to play, and two are already completed. They beat Hollenbach 8-1 to start things off and then drew 0-0 with Luzern. Next up is Fortuna Sittard before heading east.

Two friendlies

Last season's Bundesliga runners-up are in Japan from 26 July to 1 August and currently have two friendly matches arranged. The first is against Kyoto Sanga on 28 July (7pm local time) in Kyoto, before they move on to Hiroshima to take on Sanfrecce Hiroshima on 1 August (6.30pm local time).