Stuttgart's season begins in the most demanding circumstances imaginable. Sebastian Hoeneß takes his side to the Allianz Arena on Friday to face Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga opener, and he does so with a treatment room that is close to overflowing. As GOAL's match preview details, the club must manage without Lorenz Assignon, Nikolas Nartey, Dennis Seimen, Dan-Axel Zagadou, Leo Sauer, Luca Jaquez, Justin Diehl and Jeremy Arevalo. Nartey's absence is particularly painful. The Dane had won the right-back spot during pre-season, only to pull up with a hamstring injury after nine minutes of the DFB-Pokal win over Hansa Rostock, as reported by GOAL. Josha Vagnoman steps back into that role by necessity, with a transfer away from the club now blocked precisely because of Nartey's setback, according to Bild via GOAL.

The 4-0 cup victory in Rostock provided a positive start, but the injury news overshadowed it. On the transfer front, Ermedin Demirovic has decided to stay, turning down a lucrative offer from Galatasaray, Sky reported via GOAL. Interest in Bilal El Khannouss from Newcastle United adds a further layer of uncertainty, as GOAL covered, though Stuttgart's asking price remains high. Away from those distractions, the Champions League draw handed Stuttgart a group featuring Atletico Madrid at home, Inter Milan away and a trip to Galatasaray, as GOAL reported. The squad depth will be tested across all three competitions from the start, and Friday's trip to Bayern shows just how steep the opening challenge is.