Stuttgart beat Freiburg 2-1: A stunning backheel goal in the 119th minute sends the White Swans to the final.

Stuttgart officially secured their place in the DFB Pokal final after a thrilling 2-1 victory over Freiburg after 120 minutes of play. Tiago Tomas's decisive goal in the 119th minute was not only a masterpiece of technique but also a well-deserved reward for the home team's relentless attacking efforts at MHPArena.

Freiburg's pragmatism and Stuttgart's resilience

The Baden-Wurttemberg derby began with Stuttgart completely dominating the game. Sebastian Hoeness's side relentlessly pressed and created numerous dangerous scoring opportunities. However, while Stuttgart attacked frequently without scoring, Freiburg displayed remarkable pragmatism.

In the 28th minute, from a chaotic corner kick, Matthias Ginter cleverly headed the ball to Maximilian Eggestein, who rushed in to finish from close range, opening the scoring for the visitors. The unexpected goal left Stuttgart disoriented for the remainder of the first half, as their main strikers, such as Deniz Undav and Ermedin Demirovic, were unable to penetrate Freiburg's deep defensive system.

The tactical adjustment and the turning point named El Khannouss

Entering the second half, coach Sebastian Hoeness made some decisive changes. The appearance of Bilal El Khannouss from the bench completely changed the course of the game. His ability to control the tempo and his through passes made Stuttgart's play much more dynamic and unpredictable.

In the 70th minute, El Khannouss made a powerful sprint before delivering a perfect pass for Deniz Undav to decisively equalize the score at 1-1. The equalizer boosted Stuttgart's morale, allowing them to completely dominate their opponents with an expected goals (xG) of 4.24, but the brilliance of goalkeeper Florian Muller sent the match into extra time.

A moment of genius in the 119th minute.

The drama reached its peak in the final seconds of the second half of extra time. Just as the MHPArena crowd was thinking about a penalty shootout, Badredine Bouanani delivered a tricky cross into the box. With his back to the goal, Tiago Tomas executed an improvised backheel flick, sending the ball into the far corner, much to the astonishment of the entire Freiburg defense.

A goal in the 119th minute sealed a 2-1 victory for Stuttgart, sending them straight to Berlin. In the final, Stuttgart will face Bayern Munich, who also overcame Leverkusen in the other semi-final. This victory marks a courageous journey for the "White Swans" and promises an explosive final for German football.

Match statistics for Stuttgart vs Freiburg