Cup final disappears in smoke
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The ice-cold goalscorer Harry Kane led FC Bayern Munich to their long-awaited 21st cup victory and a double with a hat trick. In a DFB Cup final that was tough for a long time, Vincent Kompany’s championship team dethroned the defending champions VfB Stuttgart with a well-deserved 3-0 (0-0).
However, six years after their last triumph in the Berlin Olympic Stadium, the Munich team needed immense patience because VfB held up well over long stretches with a lot of running, discipline and physical robustness. But in the decisive scenes, the Stuttgart defense lacked access in front of 74,036 spectators.
Kane was only successful with his header after a precise cross from Michael Olise (55th minute). Then the Englishman showed his full class in the penalty area for his 60th goal of the season when he beat VfB goalkeeper Alexander Nübel a second time with his right foot (80th). With a safely converted hand penalty, the English star striker also put the final point in the second minute of stoppage time.
FC Bayern’s season assessment is now positive
After the early championship in the Bundesliga and the unfortunate semi-final exit in the Champions League against Paris Saint-Germain, there was recent speculation as to whether Bayern’s season rating would depend on just one game. If Bayern hadn’t won, the Bundesliga’s record season would have had “a bitter aftertaste,” according to Kane. So it ended with great Munich cheers and another night of partying.
Without captain Manuel Neuer, who sat out due to calf problems after his spectacular return to the national team, Bayern initially struggled. VfB coach Sebastian Hoeneß had demanded “courage” and “a lot of conviction in every phase of the game” from his team. The Swabians wanted to appear as “confident outsiders” in order to annoy Bayern and force them to make mistakes. They implemented this consistently for a long time.
VfB Stuttgart is causing problems for FC Bayern
The first opportunity presented itself early on: New representative Jonas Urbig played an inaccurate pass in the build-up to the game. But Angelo Stiller clearly missed the mark. Maximilian Mittelstädt, who like his teammate Chris Führich was not nominated for the World Cup at VfB, also had shots (9th/17th) and caused the first danger. National coach Julian Nagelsmann had suspected in advance that the duo who were not called up would be particularly motivated: They certainly wanted to show “that my decision was a mistake”.
With enormous effort, Stuttgart stopped the usual Munich game. The Swabians chased hard and aggressively and often forced the increasingly annoyed Bayern into long balls. There were no clear shots: only a header from Kane brought about a first approach. A little later, Luis Díaz also scored (30′).
A year ago, Stuttgart won the final against then second division newcomer Arminia Bielefeld 4-2. It was the highlight so far under Hoeneß, who transformed the team from almost relegated to a Champions League participant and cup winner within three years. In the final phase of the first half the statics changed: Bayern now had more possession of the ball. VfB managed to keep the record winner away from their own goal.
Fan camp of VfB Stuttgart and FC Bayern with DFB protest
After the break, both fan camps caused a stir with protests against the DFB: the association was denigrated with chants and banners in the first minutes of the second half in the Berlin Olympic Stadium. In addition, massive amounts of pyrotechnics were ignited as if in a concerted action.
Amid the smoke that was increasingly drifting into the stadium, Bayern took the lead – thanks to the individual class of crosser Olise and the callousness of Kane. It was the Englishman’s eighth goal of the cup season, with the ninth and tenth following later. Immediately after the opening goal, the game was stopped for five minutes.
The fact that it wasn’t 2-0 straight away after the restart was down to Konrad Laimer. The advanced full-back missed a free-standing save after a save from Alexander Nübel. Bayern now dominated the game and added twice more in the final phase through Kane. The people of Stuttgart could no longer find any answers in the smoky fog of Berlin.
