A header from Toni Sunjic proved to be the difference between a defiant Eintracht Braunschweig and VfB Stuttgart on Wednesday evening. The Lions had led in the game, but Sunjic's 118th minute winner sent his side through to the DFB-Pokal quarter-finals.
Stuttgart remained unchanged after drawing 0-0 with 1. FSV Mainz 05 on Friday evening, as Jürgen Kramny aimed to bring some stability back to the Swabians during his caretaker stint. It was a different story for Braunschweig, however, who opted for three alterations from their 2-0 triumph over SV Sandhausen. Phil Ofosu-Ayeh, Adam Matuschyk and Hendrick Zuck came in for Marcel Correia, Nik Omladic and Emil Berggreen, as Thorsten Lieberknecht went for a back-four once again.
Scoring start for both sides
The game couldn't have got off to a better start for the in-form visitors, as Joesph Baffo opened the scoring within five minutes. Salim Khelifi collected a short corner and whipped in a fantastic ball towards the near post, where Saulo Decarli headed onto the crossbar. The Swiss defender would not be disappointed for long with his central defensive partner, Baffo, squeezing the ball through Georg Niedermeier's legs before wheeling away in celebration.
Stuttgart responded with a double chance of their own soon after. Lukas Rupp's promising run and cross was well blocked by Baffo, but his clearance up-field soon came back into the danger-zone. Emiliano Insua collected the loose ball and his shot was spilled by Rafal Gikiewicz, who was able to recover to clear the ball off the line.
The Polish stopper made an impressive block moments later from Insua, who was getting forward at will. The Lions couldn't continue under the pressure for much longer, and paid the price for some poor marking at a corner. Christian Gentner was at the near post to flick the ball onto Niedermeier, who had the freedom of Swabia to head home unmarked in the centre to head home and level the scores.
Stuttgart pass up penalty
It was a incredibly high tempo game that showed absolutely no signs of slowing. Timo Werner was quickest to a cleared Braunschweig corner and burst forward, streaking past several of the Lions' defenders. He played in Filip Kostic, though the Serbian couldn't finish when one-on-one with Gikiewicz.
Things were going even better for the hosts when Decarli brought down Werner in the area. It was a tad unfortunate and a clash of legs but Peter Sippel pointed to the spot, in spite of the protests. Alexandru Maxim was tasked with slotting home from 12 yards, only to see Gikiewicz palm it away to safety.
The Pole was proving the difference between the two sides, and seemed to be on a one man mission to keep the opposition out. He made another stunning stop to deny Rupp's point-blank header, tipping it over the bar. Braunschweig tried to make the most of some late set-pieces at the end of the half, though Stuttgart stood firm to ensure the half ended 1-1.
Up-tempo start to the second half
Braunschweig came out firing after the break and almost found an instant goal. Some good play from Gerrit Holtmann made space for Zuck, who eventually got the ball back from the former. Zuck's shot went narrowly past the near post, some of the visiting fans even thought it had crept in. The pair continued exchanges passes and created a good crossing opportunity for Holtmann, though no-one could get on the end of it.
Just like the first half, Kramny's men came back quickly and could count themselves unlucky to not be on the scoresheet. Gentner and Rupp contrived not to score after being denied by a combination of post and Gikiewicz, while the Braunschweig stopper made an even better save from Daniel Schwaab's header.
Extra time required
The two teams continued to play at a crazy pace, in a game that resembled a basketball match. The chances were not as plentiful with the tiring legs beginning to make more mistakes, though that was fully understandable given the nature of the beast. The substitutions were also coming in midfield, as both managers made a bid to freshen up the central areas.
Stuttgart were the side pressing for the winning goal but time continued to tick down, leaving the home fans continually frustrated. Three minutes of added time provided no winner, and extra-time was required to separate the two teams. The first chance of which came to Niedermeier, who headed just wide from a corner.
Werner and Ademi strikes level things up, Sunjic wins it at the death
Things would eventually prove too much for Braunschweig, as Stuttgart's pressure told in the 99th minute of the match. Timo Werner was the man to grab the crucial third goal in the game, as he rose above everyone else to head home Boris Tashchy's cross. The home fans went wild; a quarter-final berth was in sight.
It looked like they were strolling towards the last eight, only for Orhan Ademi to pop up and spoil the party. After the ball bobbled around following Decarli's bicycle kick got the ball back into the danger area, and Ademi thundered the ball in to give the Lions renewed hope of taking the game to penalties.
One final moment of drama would decide the match. After Gikiewicz had saved brilliantly from Rupp, the resulting corner provided the winning goal. Sunjic rose highest to meet the delivery, powering it back across goal to seal Stuttgart's place in the next round and leaving Braunschweig heart-broken; a first win for Kramny in a game neither deserved to lose.