Stuttgart reach DFB-Pokal final after extra-time victory over Freiburg

Stuttgart are through to the final of the DFB-Pokal after a rollercoaster encounter against Freiburg at MHP Arena. It’s the first time they have reached back-to-back DFB-Pokal finals in their rich history. Sebastian Hoeneß’s men will hope for a different outcome than Sunday’s Bundesliga encounter against Bayern in the final.

Similar to yesterday’s tie in Leverkusen, there was a slight delay to the game due to the pre-match pyro show. Stuttgart were the better side in the first ten minutes, although the nerves were visible on a big night for both clubs.

That was more visible in the following ten minutes as Tobias Welz dished out four yellow cards. Jordy Makengo and Nikolas Nartey were the first two to be cautioned for needless challenges before Johan Manzambi and Jamie Leweling followed suit for altercations as Freiburg demanded a penalty-kick.

Maximilian Eggestein had the first real chance of the game parried away by Alexander Nübel, and Angelo Stiller was adjudged not to have made a foul before the shot. However, the midfielder did get his goal ten minutes later.

Vincenzo Grifo’s corner-kick was headed by Matthias Ginter before Eggestein’s crucial intervention from close range. In his fifth season at the club, Eggestien finally managed to score in back-to-back games as he also netted the winner against Heidenheim on Sunday.

The next couple of chances arrived at the other end for Ermedin Demirović. However, the Bosnian striker wasn’t able to bring the hosts back in the game. In particular, his rushed volley after Deniz Undav’s acrobatic play was a hasty decision.

Stuttgart maintained the pressure before the break as Jamie Leweling nearly found the target with a shot from outside the box, while Florian Müller was well beaten in Freiburg’s goal. The visitors remained in front at the break after Igor Matanović’s superb block to deny Undav from close range.

The hosts also had a big chance inside the first few minutes of the second-half, but Chris Führich failed to guide his unchallenged effort on target. Suddenly, the game turned into an end-to-end affair with Stuttgart and Angelo Stiller benefited from it.

The sought-after midfielder nearly scored the equalizer before Müller’s excellent recovery on the white line. A minute later, he scored with a ferocious shot, but it was canceled because Demirović received the ball from an offside position in the buildup.

However, the ex-Freiburg striker was pivotal in Stuttgart’s eventual equalizer. Less than ten seconds after his crucial block from Yuito Suzuki’s shot, Undav leveled the tie with a striker’s finish. Substitute Bilal El Khannouss was also instrumental as he provided the assist with a perfect counterattacking move.

Undav still had two more chances to win it for the hosts before the end of regular time. Stuttgart hit the post when his delivery was deflected by Philipp Lienhart before a poor finish near the end of the game from a very promising position.

Ex-Stuttgart goalkeeper Müller had to make two superb saves from Führich and Undav in injury-time. After starring in the quarter-final tie in Berlin, Noah Atubolu's understudy produced another great performance to take the tie into an additional 30 minutes.

There was also a slight delay before the extra-time as El Khannouss felt ill just before the kickoff. As was the case in the entire second-half, both teams had great chances to take the lead inside the first five minutes.

Lucas Höler saw his quickfire goal nullified for a push on Jeff Chabot, while the post blocked Führich from a heroic strike. Müller then pulled off another impressive save to thwart El Khannouss, who was determined to continue the game despite what had happened earlier.

In contrast, Freiburg managed to reduce Stuttgart’s chances after the break. However, in the end, it only took one golden moment to win a cup tie. Tiago Tomás provided that in the 119th minute with a cheeky finish from a superb pass by fellow extra-time substitute Badredine Bouanani.

Despite Freiburg’s desperate attempt at a late equalizer, it was too late for them to turn the result as they are knocked out in the semis once again in the cup.

Both teams are competing for European places in Bundesliga, while Freiburg still have another semi-final tie to look forward to in the Europa League against Braga. Stuttgart will face Bayern in the final on May 23rd at Olympiastadion in Berlin.