Everton's Defeat to Stuttgart Highlights Finishing Flaws
Everton signed off their two-game trip to Germany with a 3-1 defeat to VfB Stuttgart at the MHPArena, a scoreline that flattered only one department of their performance – finishing. The Premier League side carved out enough chances to leave with a comfortable win. Instead, they flew home with a harsh reminder of their most familiar flaw.
Hayden Hackney started in midfield, but new signing Christian Nørgaard remained absent from the squad. Jarrad Branthwaite, wearing the armband, partnered Lewis O’Brien at centre-back early on, with Röhl again filling in at right-back and James Garner still sidelined after minor groin surgery.
Bright build-up, brutal lesson
Stuttgart settled first, hogging possession and forcing Branthwaite into an early, crucial intervention to snuff out a dangerous move. That challenge sparked Everton’s first real thrust, Beto muscling his way forward before a heavy final touch surrendered the opening.
O’Brien then had to concede a corner, and Everton were almost punished, the resulting effort flashing wide from a tight angle. Dibling drove forward on the break but looked short of conviction, and Hackney’s ambitious, hopeful forward ball was easily read, inviting another Stuttgart attack.
After 10 minutes, Everton began to see more of the ball and the game opened up. A gift from the Stuttgart goalkeeper dropped to Alcaraz, who fed Beto, only for the striker to drag his shot well wide. The Blues were pressing well and forcing turnovers in midfield, yet each promising moment fizzled out with a loose touch or wrong decision.
Hackney then went close, slicing a shot just wide after a neat move. It felt like Everton were edging into control, but the hosts had been threatening from the first whistle and finally made it count. Nartey stepped onto a loose ball and hammered a ruthless finish into the roof of the net, giving Travers no chance.
An early reshuffle followed for Everton. Keane replaced Iroegbunam, who appeared to pick up a knock, ending the experimental O’Brien–Branthwaite partnership almost as soon as it had begun. Dibling burst into the area and looked to have been fouled, but nothing was given, and Stuttgart immediately broke upfield, only to waste the chance with a wayward shot.
Branthwaite then drove Everton out from the back, Alcaraz leading the charge and Röhl seeing his shot blocked. Beto tried an acrobatic bicycle kick that never looked on. Alcaraz broke free down the flank and whipped in a low, dangerous cross, but Beto was inches away from applying the finish.
The pattern was set. Dibling improved as the half wore on, carrying the ball well but failing to add the necessary pace or precision to his final cross, which was easily cleared. A flurry of Everton opportunities followed – half-chances, cut-backs, loose balls in the box – yet nobody in blue could find the decisive touch.
Röhl picked out Beto with an excellent pass, and the striker, instead of shooting, chose to loft a cross to the far post. Dibling never had a realistic chance of reaching it. Moments later, Travers launched long towards Beto, who produced a superb flick-on to Röhl. The return cross was perfect. The goal was begging. Beto swung… and connected with nothing but air. An astonishing miss.
Everton kept coming. Röhl’s cross found Dibling, whose shot forced a smart low save at the near post. From the resulting corner, Dibling’s delivery was on the money, but Beto powered his header over when a glance would likely have sufficed.
Stuttgart, quieter for a spell, reminded Everton of their threat as Mittelstädt lashed a rising effort over from 25 yards. Another attack saw Keane block bravely for a corner. From it, a towering header seemed destined for the top corner until Travers flung himself across goal, clawing it away brilliantly. The home side turned the screw, and Travers was called on again, stretching out a foot to deny a low drive after slick build-up play.
Everton still found joy on the break. Alcaraz released Röhl, whose pass to Beto was far too heavy. Armstrong then produced a superb tackle to break up a Stuttgart counter. Röhl advanced down the right once more but again failed to pick out Beto with his cross.
Right on half-time, Beto broke clear yet hesitated, checked his run, and the moment disappeared. Everton went in a goal down in a half they could, and probably should, have led by several.
Penalty lifeline, defensive lapses
Alcaraz restarted the second half with no changes from the visitors, but it was Stuttgart who came out sharper. Travers was immediately involved, making a string of smart saves, including a reflex stop on the line after Alcaraz, tracking back, inadvertently headed towards his own net from a corner.
Dibling began to show more aggression, driving at his marker, but Beto found himself crowded out by two defenders. Keane was penalised for a foul and Stuttgart pushed on again. Dibling kept demanding the ball, this time beating his man but delaying the lay-off and watching the move stall.
His next contribution was sharper: a quick pass released Röhl down the right, though the cross failed to trouble the hosts. Dibling then stole possession and earned a free-kick, only for Everton to turn backwards and reset, the tempo draining from a promising situation. Stuttgart responded with a vicious strike that beat Travers but cannoned off the post.
Everton’s delivery deserted them at key moments. Mykolenko advanced into a good crossing position and then produced a dreadful ball that killed another attack. Keane, by contrast, sent a fine long pass into Beto, who held off his man well before laying the ball straight to a defender.
Dibling continued to probe, this time slipping Armstrong into space, but the forward couldn’t even win a corner. Stuttgart’s response was crisp, one-touch football carving Everton open before the move ended with a corner and a wave of substitutions for the home side on the hour mark. From one of those set pieces, a soft header drifted towards goal with King stranded, but the chance went begging.
Everton also turned to their bench. Ndiaye injected urgency, quickly releasing Barry down the right, though the youngster found himself isolated and lost the ball. There was a scare when Branthwaite clutched at his thigh – or possibly his knee – but after treatment he signalled he was fine to continue.
The visitors finally got their break. A neat passing move sent Beto racing through, and as he flew over the goalkeeper he somehow emerged with what looked an extremely soft penalty. The striker dusted himself down and converted from the spot in the 72nd minute, dragging Everton level and, on the balance of chances, into a position they had long deserved.
Stuttgart almost hit back immediately with some intricate play around the box, only for Hackney to hack clear at the last moment. More changes followed, and with the fresh legs came renewed German pressure. A looping header clipped the top of King’s bar, and the substitute goalkeeper then made a routine save from a wide effort.
The game lost its structure in the closing stages. Both managers had flooded the pitch with substitutes, and the rhythm fractured. Stuttgart still carried the greater menace, though, and when Keane sliced a poor clearance straight back into danger, the punishment was swift. The third goal was worked and finished far too easily, capping a scoreline that felt unforgiving but not entirely undeserved.
Everton refused to go quietly. Deep into a strangely extended period of stoppage time – close to 10 minutes – they forced a late corner. Keane’s header was clawed away on the line, Ndiaye’s follow-up blocked twice, with one effort possibly over before being cleared. Another corner saw Dewsbury-Hall rise, only for his header to bounce just wide.
The final whistle brought an end to what was, in pure fitness terms, a valuable workout. Yet the story of the afternoon was written in the penalty area. For all the energy, structure and moments of slick combination play, Everton’s glaring wastefulness in front of goal remains the problem they simply cannot outrun.
