Stuttgart held by Copenhagen

Stuttgart's home woes continued as they were held to a goalless draw by FC Copenhagen in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday night.

Mercedes-Benz Arena clash ends in goalless draw

Stuttgart's home woes continued as they were held to a goalless draw by FC Copenhagen in the Europa League on Thursday night. Reds boss Bruno Labbadia has come under fire for his side's poor home form that has now seen them fail to record a win in their past six games in all competitions at the Mercedes-Benz Arena. A 1-0 win at Bundesliga rivals Hamburg at the weekend had revived hope Labbadia's men were on the rise but they failed to find a way past a Copenhagen side that remains second in Group E. The tone for a frustrating contest was set in an opening 45 minutes that failed to inspire. Stuttgart striker Ibrahima Traore fired the first chance of the match wide after 14 minutes but the home fans were again given little else to cheer before the break. They could have even seen their side fall behind just before the interval but goalkeeper Sven Ulreich was alert enough to parry Cesar Santin's shot away at close quarters. Vedad Ibisevic scored Stuttgart's winner at the weekend and he forced visiting goalkeeper Johan Wiland into action for the first time shortly after the break with a 12-yard shot. The hosts attempted to press forward with Gotuko Sakai heading a Cristian Molinaro corner over before Christian Gentner lost his radar from 25 yards. FC Copenhagen were put further onto the back foot as Ibisevic found space inside the area but again he was unable to keep his shot down. For all of Stuttgart's possession they were hardly troubling Wiland although the keeper did have to hold on when Tunay Torun's shot from the edge of the area was on target with 13 minutes left. There was no late onslaught from Stuttgart, however, as they again meekly let the final minutes pass them by in front of their own fans. A tame Cristian Bolanos free-kick was the closest any of the two teams came to a winner in the final moments but Tamas Hajnal cleared.