News (engl.)

VfB Stuttgart have reached the final of the DFB-Pokal for the seventh time in their history. The three-time cup winners set up a meeting with Arminia Bielefeld in the final in Berlin on 24th May after a 3-1 win against RB Leipzig in the semi-finals. Bielefeld had advanced the previous night after beating defending champions Bayer 04 Leverkusen (2-1).

Angelo Stiller (5’), Nick Woltemade (57’) and Jamie Leweling (73’) and all got on the scoresheet for Stuttgart, while Benjamin Sesko (62’) was able to get one back for the visitors. VfB  now go in search of their fourth cup title after 1954, 1958 and 1997, having last reached the final in 2013, where they lost 3-2 against FC Bayern München.

Hoeneß: “That was fantastic”

“We were able to reward ourselves at the right moments and we supported each other during tough phases of the game. Hats off to my team, that was fantastic. We’re going to Berlin,” head coach Sebastian Hoeneß told broadcaster ZDF following the game. “Like everyone else at the stadium, we’re over the moon.”

“Our journey has been something special. Two years ago, we were in the play-offs trying to avoid relegation, and now we’re in the cup final,” said Stiller. When asked about his goal, the attacker said, “I don’t think I’d manage to strike it like that again.” Teammate Woltemade added, “The atmosphere was incredible; I had goosebumps. We got our reward today.”

“We’re extremely disappointed, as we worked hard and were better in several areas,” said RBL head coach Zsolt Löw. “It’s a heavy blow. We really wanted to reach the final.”

Stiller opens the scoring in style

The 60,000 fans packed into a sold-out MHPArena witnessed an intense start to the match between two teams that were battling hard to advance. Finn Jeltsch was forced to make a last-ditch clearance against Leipzig’s Lois Openda, after the striker had managed to break into the box (1’). At the other end, Maximilian Mittelstädt had his effort deflected out for a corner by Kosta Nedeljkovic (5’).

Stuttgart then managed to take the lead from the resulting corner, setting off wild celebrations in the stadium. Sesko looked to head the corner clear of danger, but it instead fell to Stiller at the top of the box. The midfielder didn’t hesitate, powering home a stunning volley to give Stuttgart the lead (5’).

RB looked to quickly shake off the setback, keeping goalkeeper Alexander Nübel busy in the minutes that followed. The shot-stopper denied Openda twice in quick succession (15’, 17’), before stretching to prevent an effort from Xavi Simons from finding the back of the net (31’). Four minutes later, Openda was denied once again by Nübel (35’). Ridle Baku then narrowly missed the target with a shot from the side of the box (37’).

Leweling puts the game to bed

Leipzig continued to pepper the VfB goal with shots, as Stuttgart needed to ensure their backline remained tight.

The hosts had an excellent opportunity to add to their lead in the 55th minute, as Woltemade forced RB goalkeeper Maarten Vandevoordt to make a save to deny his header. Stuttgart then kept possession following the resulting corner, as Ermedin Demirovic and Woltemade linked up to double VfB’s advantage (57’).

Five minutes later, RBL were able to get one back through Sesko (62’), reigniting their hopes of being able to find a way back into the game. Stuttgart kept their composure, however, as Stiller delivered a corner in the 73rd minute that was flicked on by Woltemade. It fell to Leweling at the far post, with the full-back only needing to poke the ball over the line to put Stuttgart 3-1 up.

Sesko then rattled the crossbar in the 87th minute with a volleyed effort, as Stuttgart managed to keep the Bulls at bay in the closing minutes. With the win, the Swabians can now look forward to facing third-division side Arminia Bielefeld in the DFB-Pokal final on 24th May at the Olympiastadion in Berlin.