Stuttgart recovered from their heavy opening defeat to Bayern Munich by defeating Cologne 4-1 in a Bundesliga match at home on Friday. After a 5-1 loss to Bayern last week, Stuttgart asserted control throughout the game, demonstrating a marked improvement in performance.

Bilal El Khannouss opened the scoring in the 39th minute with a remarkable individual effort. The former Leicester winger skillfully maneuvered past two Cologne defenders before delivering a precise low shot into the bottom corner of the net. El Khannouss referred to the goal as an instinctive moment, expressing hope that it would be the first of several successful strikes this season.

Josa Vagnoman later added to Stuttgart’s lead with an impressive long-range volley. Grischa Proemel also contributed to the scoring, affirming the team’s determination to respond positively following their earlier defeat. “We wanted to show a reaction after the Bayern game and that’s what we’ve done,” Proemel said in comments to DAZN.

Cologne, despite their efforts, struggled to contain Stuttgart from the outset and were unable to prevent multiple goals. The result marked a strong bounce-back for Stuttgart, who secured a fourth-place finish last season, earning qualification for the Champions League competition.