Everton vs Stuttgart: Pre-Season Friendly Highlights
The Neckar is shimmering in the heat and the MHPArena feels more like a festival ground than the setting for a pre-season friendly. Fireworks crack, music thunders and, 45 minutes before kick-off, VfB Stuttgart are unveiling their squad like a title fight card.
It starts with an alligator.
Fritzle, the club’s mascot, struts out first to his own fanfare, posing for photos – including one with a robot, naturally – before every Stuttgart player gets the same treatment: their own announcement, their own song, their own burst of pyrotechnics. It is loud, theatrical and utterly unapologetic.
Everton’s entrance could hardly be more different. As the Stuttgart MC keeps the show rolling with on-pitch interviews, the visitors jog out to warm up almost unnoticed, slipping into the background noise of a German summer afternoon. No fireworks. No walk-on music. Just a sweltering training session in front of a crowd still being entertained by their hosts.
Inside the ground, the contrast is striking. Outside, the Neckar drifts past this striking blend of old and new architecture; inside, Joe Thomas has taken his seat high in the press box, watching the stands slowly fill as the temperature rises. The Everton players are already here, but their work is only just beginning.
A defensive pairing fans have been waiting for
The team sheet offers the first real jolt of the day. The headline from the Everton XI is at the back: Jarrad Branthwaite and Jake O’Brien together in central defence.
It is a partnership many have wanted to see, and now they finally get it. Branthwaite, starting on back-to-back weekends, continues his push towards full sharpness. O’Brien, restored to his natural position at centre-back, looks far more at home in the heart of the back line than he has when asked to plug gaps elsewhere.
That positional clarity comes with a cost. Someone still has to cover right-back. Today, that task falls to Merlin Röhl, the latest “square peg” asked to fill the round hole created by the club’s ongoing search for a specialist in that role. The debate over the right side of defence has grown loud enough to draw comment from as far up the political ladder as Prime Minister Andy Burnham, and the wait for a solution continues.
In midfield, there is another subtle shift. With Iroegbunam, Armstrong and Hackney all named in the side, Everton’s shape leans more towards a 4-3-3 than a 4-2-3-1. It suggests a more compact, energetic trio in the centre of the pitch, with Hackney also starting as he builds up his own fitness.
Further forward, this week could be significant for Dibling. He starts again, a clear sign of faith and an opportunity to finally click into form as the season edges closer. Up top, the job share between Beto and Thierno Barry continues, the pair effectively taking turns to lead the line in these warm-up games as the coaching staff weigh up their options.
Stuttgart’s heroes and a missing name
On the home side, there is one notable omission. Bilal El-Khannouss, fresh from his exploits with Morocco at the World Cup, is not in the Stuttgart squad. He might be missing from the team sheet, but he has not been forgotten. He was among those welcomed as a hero on his return, his reception underlining just how much his international performances have resonated here.
Around him, the club leans into its sense of theatre. The mascot. The pyros. The booming introductions. Every player gets their moment, every name roared out to the crowd. This is only a pre-season friendly, but Stuttgart are treating it as a show.
Everton, by contrast, are here to work.
Germany, Goodison and a split-focus afternoon
While Sean Dyche’s side are sweating it out in southern Germany, Goodison Park is stirring again back on Merseyside. With the new pitch at Deepdale still bedding in, Preston North End’s Carabao Cup tie against Huddersfield Town has been moved to the Grand Old Lady, marking the return of men’s senior football there for the first time since Everton’s 2-0 win over Southampton on May 18 last year.
So, as the Blues line up in Stuttgart, Goodison hosts competitive action of its own. Two games, two venues, one club stretching itself across a pivotal afternoon in August.
Since the win in Hamburg a week ago, there has been movement in the squad. Christian Norgaard has signed, offering fresh depth and quality, but the absence of a new right-back still hangs over these preparations. The question of balance, especially against strong opposition like Stuttgart, remains a live one.
Inside the away dressing room in Germany, shirts are hung, boots lined up, and the mood is quietly focused. The noise outside belongs to Stuttgart, but Everton’s work is about rhythm, fitness, combinations – about answers. How does Branthwaite look next to O’Brien? Can Dibling seize his chance? Will the 4-3-3 give them more control?
The MHPArena is almost ready. The fireworks have done their part. Now it is up to Everton to show whether this pre-season tour is simply a backdrop, or the start of something more convincing.
