Stuttgart left frustrated in Istanbul as Batrakov double proves costly

A ferocious atmosphere greeted Stuttgart at RAMS Park, with Atakan Karazor picking up a yellow card inside the opening minute after catching Mario Lemina in midfield.

But, despite the hosts' early intensity, it would be the visitors who almost took the lead in the eighth minute. Chris Führich and Maximilian Mittelstädt combined well down the left to find Jamie Leweling, whose effort remarkably struck both posts before bouncing clear.

Galatasaray then made the visitors pay four minutes later, as Jeff Chabot's attempted clearance fell to Aleksey Batrakov just to the right of the penalty spot, before the Russian fired past Fabian Bredlow, who got a strong hand to the ball and should perhaps have done better.

Just three minutes later, Batrakov had his second, latching onto a pass from Davinson Sánchez before slipping the ball through Bredlow's legs to double Galatasaray's advantage.

Stuttgart's miserable opening continued when Karazor was forced off through injury, with youngster Yanik Spalt coming on in his place, before Galatasaray nearly added a third in the 22nd minute, with Bredlow denying Batrakov his hat-trick and Viktor Osimhen firing the rebound over the crossbar.

Tempers flared with around ten minutes remaining before the break, as Barış Alper Yılmaz sent Führich tumbling off the pitch, sparking a confrontation involving players and members of both coaching staffs.

Führich, heavily involved throughout the half, came close to pulling one back in the 42nd minute, curling an effort toward the far corner after cutting inside Roland Sallai, only for Uğurcan Çakır to get a slight touch and turn the ball narrowly wide.

In the second half, the intensity from the visitors increased, with Führich continuing to have a superb game down the left for VfB. 

Seeking control again, Galatasaray turned to Rafa Leao for their own energy on their respective left flank, but it was Stuttgart who remained in the ascendancy. 

The biggest moment yet for Die Schwaben came just after 75 minutes, when Deniz Undav rattled the bar from the middle of the box, before Führich found the net from range with a curling effort. 

However, the Stuttgart hope would be short-lived, with referee Chris Kavanagh announcing that the goal had been ruled out for offside against skipper Undav. 

Undav would remain at the heart of things for the visitors, sending Dženan Pejčinović through on goal in the 86th minute, before the summer signing failed to beat Çakır inside the box, as his wait for a goal outside of the DFB-Pokal goes on, rather summing up the frustrating evening for Stuttgart.

And after all of that, it ended 2-0 to Galatasaray, who had to hold on at times in the second half, but were more than worth the three points after such a threatening first-half performance. 

Now, Stuttgart turn their attention to Saturday's clash with Bremen, while they have to wait until the end of the month for their next Champions League clash, when they travel to Inter Milan on 25 November.