A 1-0 defeat at Hamburg has halted Stuttgart's momentum and left the club sitting 13th in the Bundesliga with six points from six games. The loss at the Volksparkstadion was a setback after back-to-back wins, including a 2-0 victory at Paderborn and a commanding 3-0 away result against Slovan Bratislava in the Champions League. That European form had offered genuine encouragement, with captain Deniz Undav breaking his scoring drought in Bratislava and earning recognition as the most dangerous German player in European competition since last season, according to Opta. His return to form had been one of the brighter stories of recent weeks after a slow start to the campaign that saw him omitted from the national squad.

The Bundesliga picture remains uncomfortable. Stuttgart's inconsistency has been a recurring theme, with heavy defeats against Bayern Munich and earlier losses to Dortmund and Hoffenheim sitting alongside the stronger European displays. Sebastian Hoeneß has kept faith in his squad through the difficult patches, and that backing appeared to be paying off before Hamburg ended the winning run.

Attention now turns to the Champions League, where Atletico Madrid visit the MHPArena on 20 October. It is a significant test of where Stuttgart genuinely stand in Europe, and a positive result would do much to restore confidence after the weekend disappointment.