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Stuttgart (dpa / lsw) - Coach Pellegrino Matarazzo did not want to go into possible connections between the power struggle at VfB Stuttgart and the appearance on the lawn.

Can it at least subconsciously influence a player who has noticed the tussle at management level and the dispute over the general meeting?

Can a few percentage points be missing, even without being aware of it, if the club gives such a bad image?

"I find it a very interesting question," replied Matarazzo on Thursday.

But he did not share his thoughts on it.

The theater of the club is anything but a favorite topic of his, it is not part of his area of ​​responsibility.

"I'll press the button again and spit out what I always spit out: that my focus is on the sport," said the coach.

For him, the home game on Saturday (3.30 p.m. / Sky) against Hertha BSC counts.

His eleven had to be “wide awake” against the Berlin coach returnees Pal Dardai after “a few blackouts” snuck in at 2: 5 in Leverkusen and his eleven was “not present” in the first half.

Is it really possible without any influence from the turbulence in the area?

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Like a prayer wheel, Matarazzo and sports director Sven Mislintat have repeatedly rejected the fact that the leadership crisis is affecting the team.

Captain Gonzalo Castro also recently said clearly that from his point of view there is no connection to the sporting downward trend.

He doesn't know whether the young players in particular, who don't speak German very well, even notice anything.

But he himself "naturally" noticed the unrest.

Castro may be fit for Saturday sooner than expected after his muscle fiber tear.

The 33-year-old has probably also read that the general meeting, including the presidential elections, is to be postponed by ten days to March 28, according to a report in the “Stuttgarter Zeitung” and the “Stuttgarter Nachrichten”.

In any case, it is certain that after three defeats in the last four Bundesliga games, VfB is looking for a way out of the downward trend, while everything but calm returns on the political level.

After the presidium meeting on Wednesday, a public declaration by the association on the date for the general meeting was still waiting for Thursday afternoon.

It is clear, however, that March 18th can no longer be held.

Because at the latest on Wednesday, President Claus Vogt should have invited for it.

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How the 51-year-old reacts to the fact that he apparently could not get the presidium to let the event take place in September is just as unclear as the question of whether he will be allowed to vote at all.

Will the club's advisory board announce its candidates over the weekend?

Will this then overshadow the sporting events against Hertha, who is threatened with relegation?

Matarazzo would certainly not mind if his team instead made the fans happy with their second home win.

He sees himself as a protective shield that wants to keep the Zoff away from the team.

"I think we are on the right track to achieve our goal of relegation," said Matarazzo in view of eight points ahead of the relegation rank.

VfB does not seem to be well on the way to an end to the power struggle.

© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210211-99-401332 / 2

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VfB Stuttgart squad

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