After flirting with the drop for a number of seasons, VfB Stuttgart's 38-year stay in the Bundesliga came to an end

Season in a nutshell

The writing appeared to be on the wall for Stuttgart when Alexander Zorniger was relieved of his duties as head coach after 13 matches. Die Schwaben were just a point clear of the bottom two at the time, but reserve team boss Jürgen Kramny came in to revitalise the club and propel them to within touching distance of the European places by mid-February.

Top three games

MD13: VfB Stuttgart 0-4 FC Augsburg

A crushing home defeat to Augsburg spelled the end for Zorniger, who bowed out having won just three of his 13 Bundesliga matches in charge.

MD23: VfB Stuttgart 1-2 Hannover 96

The Swabians' eight-match unbeaten revival came to an unexpected end at home to rock-bottom Hannover, triggering a fateful run of results that included one win, two draws and eight defeats.

MD32: SV Werder Bremen 6-2 VfB Stuttgart

The most damaging defeat of all came at the hands of struggling Bremen and saw Stuttgart drop back into the automatic relegation places for the first time since December 2015.

MVP

In the midst of a whole host of changeable individual performances, Lukas Rupp delivered one consistent display after the other in the Stuttgart midfield. The 25-year-old made 29 Bundesliga appearances all told, registering five goals and six assists.