Donyell Malen (3rd R) of Borussia Dortmund celebrates scoring with his teammates during the first division of Bundesliga football match between Borussia Dortmund and FC Augsburg in Dortmund, Germany, May 4, 2024. (Photo by Joachim Bywaletz/Xinhua)
BERLIN, May 4 (Xinhua) -- Third-placed Stuttgart narrowed the gap to runners-up Bayern Munich to two points after goals from Leonidas Stergiou, Woo-Yeong Jeong and Silas secured a 3-1 home victory at the 32nd round on Saturday.
The Swabians started brightly against the German record champions, dominating possession and creating the clear-cut chances through Chris Fuhrich, whose header forced Bayern goalie Manuel Neuer into action with ten minutes gone, and Serhou Guirassy, whose volley got defused by defender Eric Dier on the goal line in the 27th minute.
Uninspired Bayern posed no threat to Stuttgart's defence, and the hosts broke the deadlock at the half-hour mark when Deniz Undav and Stergiou traded passes before the defender chipped the ball over Neuer.
Bayern still took a 1-1 stalemate into the half time break as Waldemar Anton fouled Serge Gnabry inside the box. Harry Kane stepped up and made no mistake to score his 36th goal with the subsequent penalty in the 37th minute.
The German record champions had the chance to grab the lead after the restart, but Eric-Maxim Choupo-Moting squandered a promising counterattack with only Stuttgart goalkeeper Alexander Nubel to beat in the 48th minute.
However, Stuttgart remained in control and kept Bayern busy as Neuer had to defuse two efforts from Fuhrich in the 51st minute.
The Swabians eventually grabbed the 2-1 lead in the 83rd minute when Silas had enough space to send a cross into the area where Jeong headed past Neuer at the near post.
Stuttgart made it three after Silas hammered home from 15 meters to seal the win in the dying seconds of the game.
"The first half was very good. In the second half the game we were a bit too greedy in the first phase and attacked too early. In the end we got the game on our side, which we are happy about. This means that we qualified for the Champions League," said Stuttgart coach Sebastian Hoeness.
In the other matches on Saturday, Borussia Dortmund trashed hapless Augsburg 5-1 thanks to the brace from Youssoufa Moukoko.
Wolfsburg secured its third straight victory after seeing off last-placed Darmstadt 3-0.
Borussia Monchengladbach snatched a late 2-2 stalemate with Werder Bremen as Florian Neuhaus left it late and Freiburg held Cologne to a goalless draw to increase the relegation worries of the Billy Goats.
Already on Friday, Hoffenheim reaped a 1-1 draw with 10-man Leipzig. ■
Youssoufa Moukoko (L) of Borussia Dortmund celebrates scoring with his teammate Marco Reus during the first division of Bundesliga football match between Borussia Dortmund and FC Augsburg in Dortmund, Germany, May 4, 2024. (Photo by Joachim Bywaletz/Xinhua)
Mateu Morey Bauza (Rear) of Borussia Dortmund vies with Kevin Mbabu of FC Augsburg during the first division of Bundesliga football match between Borussia Dortmund and FC Augsburg in Dortmund, Germany, May 4, 2024. (Photo by Joachim Bywaletz/Xinhua)
Players of Borussia Dortmund acknowledge the spectators after winning the first division of Bundesliga football match between Borussia Dortmund and FC Augsburg in Dortmund, Germany, May 4, 2024. (Photo by Joachim Bywaletz/Xinhua)
Youssoufa Moukoko (2nd R) of Borussia Dortmund celebrates scoring with his teammates during the first division of Bundesliga football match between Borussia Dortmund and FC Augsburg in Dortmund, Germany, May 4, 2024. (Photo by Joachim Bywaletz/Xinhua)
Donyell Malen (front) of Borussia Dortmund celebrates scoring with his teammates during the first division of Bundesliga football match between Borussia Dortmund and FC Augsburg in Dortmund, Germany, May 4, 2024. (Photo by Joachim Bywaletz/Xinhua)
