What a wild game – with an outstanding Florian Wirtz (18)!
Leverkusen wins 3: 1 at VfB Stuttgart and jumps to third place in the table. For the Swabians, a horror series continues with the defeat: VfB has been without a win at home against the Bayer-Elf for over 11 years.
Leverkusen with a lightning start! After VfB lost the ball in midfield, the ball came over Schick to Bakker, who crossed from the left to the second post. There Andrich heads relatively freely into the far corner – 1-0 after 90 seconds.
And Leverkusen is stepping up straight away. Wirtz played over Karazor on the right side and ran through to the baseline. Schick easily slides his flat pass into the middle to make it 2-0 (19th).
But of all people a Leverkusen player brings Stuttgart back into the game!
31st minute: Andrich hits Coulibaly’s knee with a stretched leg. Referee Cortous initially only shows yellow, after the intervention of the VAR he sends the father-to-be (expects a daughter with his wife Alicia in October) but rightly with red!
With one more man on the field, Stuttgart becomes more active and scores. After a free kick from Marmoush Mavropanos screwed up. Hradecky scrapes the Greek’s header off the line with a great save, but Mangala is completely free and dusts off (38th).
After half-time, emotions also boil on the sidelines. After a foul on Aránguiz, VfB coach Pellegrino Matarazzo and his counterpart Gerardo Seoane contested.
The only one who stays cool: Florian Wirtz. In midfield, the national player (played with the national team in Stuttgart two weeks ago) wins the ball and sprints forward. In the penalty area he can cross, but he decides to finish and makes it 3: 1 – the decision in a wild game!
There are too few of Stuttgart in the second half.