BERLIN, Aug. 17 (Xinhua) -- Bayer Leverkusen kicked off the new season just as they ended the last, with Xabi Alonso's squad lifting the German Supercup on Saturday after a dramatic 4-3 (2-2) penalty shootout victory over Stuttgart to secure their first title of the season.
The Werkself started on the front foot, opening the scoring in the 11th minute when Victor Boniface tapped in Edmond Tapsoba's header at the far post. Stuttgart, however, responded swiftly, leveling the match just four minutes later as Enzo Millot drilled a shot into the bottom corner from 13 meters out.
The Swabians piled on the pressure but couldn't convert their chances into anything tangible as Ermedin Demirovic, Chris Fuhrich and Pascal Stenzel hit the woodwork in quick succession.
Leverkusen struggled to find their feet and lacked precision in the final third. To make matters worse, Martin Terrier was sent off for a foul on Demirovic just before the break.
Stuttgart continued to dominate after the restart, while Leverkusen stood firm in defense.
A triple substitution gave Stuttgart a much-needed boost, with Silas Katompa Mvumpa, Frans Kratzig and Deniz Undav all coming on and making an immediate impact after Kratzig's through ball found Undav to turn the game on the hour mark.
Leverkusen piled on the pressure in a hectic closing period that saw plenty of yellow cards. They finally broke the deadlock in the 88th minute when Patrick Schick beat Stuttgart goalkeeper Alexander Nubel with a low shot into the bottom left corner.
Kratzig and Silas missed their efforts in the penalty shootout, allowing Leverkusen to lift the Supercup.
"We are on the right way, but we have seen today on which areas we have to improve. We have a young team and Leverkusen fielded some top players in the closing stages. Nevertheless, we would have liked the game to end differently," said Stuttgart coach Sebastian Hoeness. ■
微信扫描下方的二维码阅读本文
