Stuttgart Secures DFB-Pokal Final Spot with Last-Gasp Goal Against Freiburg

A particularly feisty opening segment saw four yellow cards handed out within a frenetic five-minute stretch, during which Maximilian Eggestein passionately appealed for a penalty after going down under the challenge of Angelo Stiller.

While those appeals were quickly dismissed by the referee, they were soon forgotten by the travelling fans, who found themselves celebrating shortly after when Matthias Ginter directed a headed corner that had only been partially cleared into the six-yard box, allowing Eggestein to finish past Alexander Nübel.

Stuttgart went into half-time without registering a single shot on target, despite their efforts. Just before the break, Ermedin Demirović misfired, sending a bouncing ball inside the box well over the crossbar.

He later failed to connect cleanly with a flick attempt, while Jamie Leweling narrowly missed the target with a low shot, and Deniz Undav had a close-range volley blocked during the first-half’s added time.

Freiburg entered the second half with a 1-0 lead, having lost their last three away encounters against Stuttgart by a total of 10-0. Die Schwaben pressed for an equaliser, with Chris Führich misfiring wide from a prime position at the back post. Florian Müller made his first save of the match, preventing a loose ball from crossing the line just before a Stiller shot was ruled out for offside.

The tension heightened when Yuito Suzuki had a chance thwarted by a last-ditch block, leading to a counterattack that ended with Bilal El Khannouss setting up Undav, who brought the scores level with a precise first-time strike.

With the momentum now behind them, Stuttgart almost took the lead as Undav’s deflected shot was kept out by Müller and the post.

In stoppage time, Müller had to stretch to push away a curling effort from Führich before denying Undav again with a powerful shot, ultimately sending the match into extra time for only the second time in Freiburg’s last 13 outings in this competition.

Lucas Höler thought he had scored right after the break, only to have a foul called against his team. At the other end, Führich hit the woodwork with a fierce first-time effort, after which Müller made an incredible save to deny El Khannouss, who had capitalised on a neat one-two.

Stuttgart pressed relentlessly for a winner, and with penalties looming, Tiago Tomás dashed Freiburg’s hopes with a perfectly timed run and flick to direct El Khannouss’ low cross into the net.

This victory marks Stuttgart’s 11th consecutive win in the DFB-Pokal, setting a new club record, and their reward will be a clash with Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich in the final.

Freiburg, the vanquished semi-finalists, will not have the opportunity to avenge their defeat in last season’s final, but they still have a chance at their first major trophy, with a UEFA Europa League semi-final on the horizon.

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