Germany forward Deniz Undav scored in stoppage time to rescue a 3-3 draw for third-place Stuttgart against Heidenheim in the Bundesliga on Sunday, preserving the team’s seven-game unbeaten streak after a dramatic finale.
An own-goal from Stuttgart goalkeeper Alexander Nübel and
two quick-fire goals from Tim Kleindienst had given the visitors a late 3-2
lead.
But Maximilian Mittelstädt sent a long ball forward for
Undav to take with his back toward goal. Undav eluded two defenders as he
turned and scored inside the far corner for Stuttgart’s equalizer.
Neither team was happy with the draw.
“We’re not happy because we took over the game completely
when we got the goal back, we believed in ourselves, turned the game around
with unbelievable will and then conceded the equalizer in the 90th-plus-eight,”
said Heidenheim coach Frank Schmidt, who led Heidenheim to its first promotion
last season.
“In the end it’s still a point. Despite all the
disappointment of my team, which is of course really annoyed that we gave the
game away – that’s why we’re not happy – but after a day’s distance and a
night’s sleep, I’ll tell the team tomorrow that we took a point from the
third-place team in the table, who will probably play Champions League next
season. That’s worth something,” Schmidt said. “In two games against VfB
Stuttgart we’ve collected four points. We shouldn’t forget that.”
The home team thought it had made a great start with Serhou
Guirassy firing inside the left post after a fast break involving Undav and
fellow Germany player Chris Führich, but the goal was ruled out after a VAR
check for offside.
Guirassy did score in the 41st to take his tally to 23 goals
in 21 league appearances. Angelo Stiller combined with Undav to give Guirassy
an easy finish, and Stiller gave Stuttgart a comfortable 2-0 lead early in the
second half after another perfectly played combination with Undav.
The visitors got one back in the 62nd when Nübel dropped a
harmless-looking header from Kleindienst that saw the ball squirm between his
legs.
Kleindienst wasn’t done yet. The 28-year-old forward
equalized in the 84th with a volley to Jan-Niklas Beste’s cross, then headed in
Eren Dinkçi’s cross a minute later.
Heidenheim forward Nikola Dovedan was shown a straight red
card for a challenge on Mittelstädt just before Undav preserved Stuttgart’s
unbeaten run and gained a point for its Champions League qualification bid. The
top four in Germany are sure of qualifying for Europe’s premier club
competition. Stuttgart has a seven-point cushion over fifth-place Leipzig with
seven games remaining.
Sunday’s match was the 1,000th Bundesliga game to be played
in Stuttgart’s stadium, formerly known as the Neckarstadion before sponsors
paid to rename it. The Stuttgarter Kickers played in 36 of those games in the
1988-89 and 1991-92 seasons.
Augsburg drew with Cologne 1-1 in the early game, leaving
Cologne in relegation danger. The Billy Goats were second from bottom, six
points from safety.
Bochum could increase that gap later Sunday when it played
last-place Darmstadt in another relegation fight. -AP