VfL Wolfsburg suffered a nightmare season, only just staying up in Bundesliga, in spite of signing internationally seasoned players Diego and Simon Kjær. Being threatened at the bottom of the table, especially after selling key striker Edin Džeko to Manchester City. The replacements were not up to scratch, which saw manager Steve McClaren sacked. Following a short stint with Pierre Littbarski in charge, the club's 2009 championship-winning manager Felix Magath, who just had been sacked from Schalke 04, in spite of having taken them to the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League. Magath dropped Diego, prompting the Brazilian to refuse to sit on the substitutes' bench. In spite of the turmoil, a crucial away win at Werder Bremen helped Wolfsburg to stay just two points above Borussia Mönchengladbach in the relegation-playoff zone.
| 2010–11 season | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manager | Steve McClaren Pierre Littbarski Felix Magath | |||
| Bundesliga | 15th | |||
| DFB-Pokal | Round of 16 | |||
| Top goalscorer | All: Edin Džeko (11) League: Edin Džeko (10) | |||
|
| ||||
Squad edit
Defenders edit
Andrea Barzagli
Michael Schulze- Robin Knoche
- Marcel Schäfer
- Arne Friedrich
Peter Pekarík- Alexander Madlung
- Fabian Johnson
Simon Kjær
Midfielders edit
- Sascha Riether
- Christian Gentner
- Akaki Gogia
- Thomas Kahlenberg
Makoto Hasebe
Josué- Ashkan Dejagah
Karim Ziani- Diego
Jan Polák
Yohandry Orozco
Koo Ja-cheol
Attackers edit
Bundesliga edit
League table edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | Werder Bremen | 34 | 10 | 11 | 13 | 47 | 61 | −14 | 41 | |
| 14 | Schalke 04 | 34 | 11 | 7 | 16 | 38 | 44 | −6 | 40 | Qualification to Europa League play-off round[a] |
| 15 | VfL Wolfsburg | 34 | 9 | 11 | 14 | 43 | 48 | −5 | 38 | |
| 16 | Borussia Mönchengladbach (O) | 34 | 10 | 6 | 18 | 48 | 65 | −17 | 36 | Qualification to relegation play-offs |
| 17 | Eintracht Frankfurt (R) | 34 | 9 | 7 | 18 | 31 | 49 | −18 | 34 | Relegation to 2. Bundesliga |
Source: kicker
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(O) Play-off winners; (R) Relegated
Notes:
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(O) Play-off winners; (R) Relegated
Notes:
- ^ Schalke 04 as winners of the 2010–11 DFB-Pokal qualified for the play-off round of the 2011–12 UEFA Europa League.
Matches edit
| 20 August 2010 1 | Bayern Munich | 2–1 | VfL Wolfsburg | Munich |
| 20:30 | Müller  9' Van Bommel  33'Schweinsteiger 90' |
Report | Pekarík 43' Džeko 55'Cícero 61' |
Stadium: Allianz Arena Attendance: 69,000 Referee: Thorsten Kinhöfer (Herne) |
| 28 August 2010 2 | VfL Wolfsburg | 3–4 | Mainz 05 | Wolfsburg |
| 15:30 | Mandžukić 8' Džeko 23', 27', 90' Diego 30', 70' |
Report | Rasmussen 39' Soto 48' Schürrle 58' Polanski 72'Soto 80'Szalai 85', 86' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 26,116 Referee: Peter Sippel (Munich) |
| 11 September 2010 3 | Borussia Dortmund | 2–0 | VfL Wolfsburg | Dortmund |
| 15:30 | Şahin 50', 73' Kagawa 67'Großkreutz 77' |
Report | Cícero 26' Diego 45'Dejagah 87' |
Stadium: Signal Iduna Park Attendance: 73,600 Referee: Deniz Aytekin (Oberasbach) |
| 18 September 2010 4 | VfL Wolfsburg | 2–0 | Hannover 96 | Wolfsburg |
| 15:30 | Diego 4', 55' Josué 63'Džeko 67' |
Report | Schmiedebach 56' Schulz 59' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Wolfgang Stark (Ergolding) |
| 22 September 2010 5 | Hamburger SV | 1–3 | VfL Wolfsburg | Hamburg |
| 20:00 | Choupo-Moting 27' |
Report | Džeko 15' Grafite 71', 78' |
Stadium: Imtech Arena Attendance: 50,231 Referee: Günter Perl (Pullach im Isartal) |
| 26 September 2010 6 | VfL Wolfsburg | 2–1 | SC Freiburg | Wolfsburg |
| 15:30 | Grafite 25', 64' Josué 43' |
Report | Cissé 36' Butscher 63'Mujdža 78' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 26,204 Referee: Markus Schmidt (Stuttgart) |
| 2 October 2010 7 | Borussia Mönchengladbach | 1–1 | VfL Wolfsburg | Mönchengladbach |
| 15:30 | Bradley 41' Reus 45'Marx 65' |
Report | Kahlenberg 27', 52' Džeko 90' |
Stadium: Borussia-Park Attendance: 40,423 Referee: Christian Dingert (Lebecksmühle) |
| 16 October 2010 8 | VfL Wolfsburg | 2–3 | Bayer Leverkusen | Wolfsburg |
| 18:30 | Diego 9' Grafite 68'Dejagah 89' |
Report | Barnetta 31' Reinartz 67'Friedrich 70'Rolfes 72', 82' Vidal 75' (pen.)Kadlec 77'Sam 90' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Thorsten Kinhöfer |
| 23 October 2010 9 | 1. FC Nürnberg | 2–1 | VfL Wolfsburg | Nuremberg |
| 15:30 | Gündoğan 11' Frantz 63'Cohen 90' |
Report | Josué 13' Grafite 27', 29'Kjær 88' |
Stadium: Stadion Nürnberg Attendance: 40,127 Referee: Guido Winkmann (Kerken) |
| 30 October 2010 10 | VfL Wolfsburg | 2–0 | VfB Stuttgart | Wolfsburg |
| 15:30 | Džeko 6', 76' |
Report | Harnik 78' Audel 79' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 29,043 Referee: Markus Wingenbach |
| 6 November 2010 11 | Eintracht Frankfurt | 3–1 | VfL Wolfsburg | Frankfurt |
| 15:30 | Gekas 26', 55' (pen.) Schwegler 38'Vasoski 90' |
Report | Džeko 43' Dejagah 66'Diego 90' |
Stadium: Commerzbank-Arena Attendance: 43,8000 Referee: Peter Sippel (Munich) |
| 13 November 2010 12 | VfL Wolfsburg | 2–2 | Schalke 04 | Wolfsburg |
| 15:30 | Grafite 11' Džeko 33' |
Report | Edu 39' Huntelaar 75' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Wolfgang Stark |
| 21 November 2010 13 | FC St. Pauli | 1–1 | VfL Wolfsburg | Hamburg |
| 17:30 | Thorandt 28' |
Report | Diego 38' Džeko 54', 82'Barzagli 81' |
Stadium: Millerntor-Stadion Attendance: 24,150 Referee: Markus Schmidt (Stuttgart) |
| 28 November 2010 14 | 1. FC Köln | 1–1 | VfL Wolfsburg | Cologne |
| 17:30 | Geromel 19' Podolski 22'Novaković 51' |
Report | Barzagli 63' Cícero 81'Kjær 87' |
Stadium: RheinEnergieStadion Attendance: 43,000 Referee: Guido Winkmann (Kerken) |
| 4 December 2010 15 | VfL Wolfsburg | 0–0 | Werder Bremen | Wolfsburg |
| 15:30 | Diego 35' Barzagli 71'Kjær 79' |
Report | Prödl 76' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Deniz Aytekin (Oberasbach) |
| 11 December 2010 16 | 1. FC Kaiserslautern | 0–0 | VfL Wolfsburg | Kaiserslautern |
| 15:30 | Petsos 83' |
Report | Ziani 31' Cícero 63'Hasebe 78' |
Stadium: Fritz-Walter-Stadion Attendance: 38,181 Referee: Peter Sippel (Munich) |
| 18 December 2010 17 | VfL Wolfsburg | 2–2 | 1899 Hoffenheim | Wolfsburg |
| 15:30 | Madlung 72' Diego 75' Mandžukić 78'Džeko 90' |
Report | Luiz Gustavo 34' Sigurðsson 40'Salihović 77' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 24,512 Referee: Knut Kircher (Rottenburg) |
| 15 January 2011 18 | VfL Wolfsburg | 1–1 | Bayern Munich | Wolfsburg |
| 15:30 | Mandžukić 3' Josué 56'Riether 86' |
Report | Müller 7' Schweinsteiger 45'Badstuber 49' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Manuel Gräfe (Berlin) |
| 22 January 2011 19 | Mainz 05 | 0–1 | VfL Wolfsburg | Mainz |
| 15:30 | Polanski 77' |
Report | Friedrich 70' Kjær 82' |
Stadium: Bruchwegstadion Attendance: 18,900 Referee: Günter Perl (Pullach im Isartal) |
| 29 January 2011 20 | VfL Wolfsburg | 0–3 | Borussia Dortmund | Wolfsburg |
| 15:30 | Friedrich 53' Pekarík 68' |
Report | Barrios 2' Şahin 40' Piszczek 63'Hummels 71'Subotić 77' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Knut Kircher (Rottenburg) |
| 5 February 2011 21 | Hannover 96 | 1–0 | VfL Wolfsburg | Hanover |
| 15:30 | Pinto 4' Ya Konan 37' |
Report | Kjær 60' Grafite 70'Pekarík 84' |
Stadium: AWD-Arena Attendance: 37,213 Referee: Guido Winkmann (Kerken) |
| 12 February 2011 22 | VfL Wolfsburg | 0–1 | Hamburger SV | Wolfsburg |
| 15:30 | Kjær 32' Grafite 60'Polák 67'Friedrich 73' |
Report | Petrić 33' (pen.) Aogo 90' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Marco Fritz (Korb) |
| 19 February 2011 23 | SC Freiburg | 2–1 | VfL Wolfsburg | Freiburg |
| 15:30 | Mujdža 31' Reisinger 43' Cissé 69'Barth 75'Butscher 89' |
Report | Helmes 28' |
Stadium: Badenova-Stadion Attendance: 19,200 Referee: Robert Hartmann (Wangen) |
| 25 February 2011 24 | VfL Wolfsburg | 2–1 | Borussia Mönchengladbach | Wolfsburg |
| 20:30 | Diego 37', 45', 85' Friedrich 59'Polák 73'Mandžukić 88' |
Report | Reus 41' Stranzl 64'Daems 74' (pen.)De Camargo 77' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 28,763 Referee: Jochen Drees (Münster-Sarmsheim) |
| 5 March 2011 25 | Bayer Leverkusen | 3–0 | VfL Wolfsburg | Leverkusen |
| 18:30 | L. Bender 21' Augusto 29' Kießling 46' |
Report | Cícero 45' Mbokani 69'Friedrich 71'Koo 84' |
Stadium: BayArena Attendance: 28,115 Referee: Felix Zwayer (Berlin) |
| 12 March 2011 26 | VfL Wolfsburg | 1–2 | 1. FC Nürnberg | Wolfsburg |
| 15:30 | Mbokani 20' Mandžukić 23'Pekarík 58' |
Report | Chandler 34' Wollscheid 45' Wolf 61'Pinola 67'Nilsson 90' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 27,316 Referee: Guido Winkmann (Kerken) |
| 20 March 2011 27 | VfB Stuttgart | 1–1 | VfL Wolfsburg | Stuttgart |
| 17:30 | Niedermeier 90' Schipplock 90' |
Report | Pekarík 22' Grafite 40'Kjær 45'Lenz 66' |
Stadium: Mercedes-Benz Arena Attendance: 38,500 Referee: Manuel Gräfe (Berlin) |
| 3 April 2011 28 | VfL Wolfsburg | 1–1 | Eintracht Frankfurt | Wolfsburg |
| 17:30 | Mandžukić 51', 85' Friedrich 71'  71' |
Report | Ochs 13' Altıntop 48'Meier 59'Rode 68'Franz 70'Tzavellas 82' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 29,125 Referee: Thorsten Kinhöfer (Herne) |
| 9 April 2011 29 | Schalke 04 | 1–0 | VfL Wolfsburg | Gelsenkirchen |
| 15:30 | Jurado 76' Baumjohann 90' |
Report | Grafite 48' Cícero 51'Koo 54' |
Stadium: Veltins-Arena Attendance: 61,673 Referee: Peter Sippel (Munich) |
| 16 April 2011 30 | VfL Wolfsburg | 2–2 | FC St. Pauli | Wolfsburg |
| 15:30 | Mandžukić 39' Hasebe 50'Koo 81'Polák 88' |
Report | Bruns 41' Naki 61' Asamoah 69'Lehmann 77' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Felix Brych (Munich) |
| 24 April 2011 31 | VfL Wolfsburg | 4–1 | 1. FC Köln | Wolfsburg |
| 15:30 | Mandžukić 14', 39' Dejagah 58', 88' |
Report | Freis 40' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Günter Perl (Pullach im Isartal) |
| 29 April 2011 32 | Werder Bremen | 0–1 | VfL Wolfsburg | Bremen |
| 20:30 | Mertesacker 65' Frings 66' |
Report | Riether 22' Friedrich 27'Cícero 31'Mandžukić 47'Grafite 61' |
Stadium: Weser-Stadion Attendance: 40,000 Referee: Manuel Gräfe (Berlin) |
| 7 May 2011 33 | VfL Wolfsburg | 1–2 | 1. FC Kaiserslautern | Wolfsburg |
| 15:30 | Mandžukić 6' |
Report | Lakić 25' Amedick 46'De Wit 90' |
Stadium: Volkswagen Arena Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Knut Kircher (Rottenburg) |
| 14 May 2011 34 | 1899 Hoffenheim | 1–3 | VfL Wolfsburg | Sinsheim |
| 15:30 | Firmino 49' |
Report | Madlung 52' Mandžukić 60', 73' Grafite 78' |
Stadium: Rhein-Neckar-Arena Attendance: 30,150 Referee: Thorsten Kinhöfer (Herne) |
Top scorers edit
Edin Džeko (10)
Mario Mandžukić (8)- Grafite (9)
- Diego (6)