Berlin (Germany) Nov 27: Stuttgart returned to winning ways and extend Mainz' winless run to three straight games after goals from Hiroki Ito and Borna Sosa secured the "Swabians" a 2-1 victory at the opener of the 13th round in Bundesliga on Friday.
Stuttgart needed no warmup time and came to its first chance with only three minutes gone when Omar Marmoush danced through Mainz' defence before testing goalkeeper Robin Zentner.
Mainz needed some time to gain a foothold into the clash but created its first scoring opportunity through Karim Onisiwo, whose shot on target forced Stuttgart goalkeeper Florian Muller into action in the 12th minute.
The opener was scored at the other end of the green ten minutes later though, as Ito curled Orel Mangala's build-up work unstoppable into the far post corner in the 21st minute.
Four minutes later, the "Swabians" thought they had the chance to double their lead from the penalty spot, but the referee revoked his penalty decision after reviewing Zentner's tackle inside the box.
Mainz responded just before the break and leveled the scores through Alexander Hack, who nodded home Jean-Paul Boetius corner kick to stun the hosts in the 39th minute.
The "Nullfunfer" increased the pressure and tried to turn things around with long-range efforts but for all that both sides took the 1-1 stalemate into the break.
After halftime, Stuttgart caught a perfect start and retook the lead in the 51st minute when Sosa caught Zentner flatfooted after hammering the ball from inside the box into the top left angle to make it 2-1 on the scoreboards.
Mainz remained unimpressed and sticked to its game plan to reach success with long-range shots but neither Boetius nor Hack was able to score the equalizer.
Stuttgart however defended well and kept the visitors at bay to protect its narrow lead until the final whistle.
With the win, Stuttgart recorded its third win of the campaign and move on the 13th spot for now meanwhile eighth placed Mainz suffered its fifth defeat.
"We weren't efficient enough in the final third, but Stuttgart also defended very well and kept us at arm length. We improved in the second half, but we simply couldn't find a gap in Stuttgart's bulwark. It is an unlucky loss for us, but we have to accept this and move on," Mainz sporting director Martin Schmidt said.
The following fixtures are scheduled for Saturday: Bochum host Freiburg, Cologne clash with Borussia Monchengladbach, Wolfsburg face Borussia Dortmund, Hertha Berlin encounter Augsburg, newly promoted Greuther Furth meet Hoffenheim, and front runners Bayern see Arminia Bielefeld. Enditem
Source: Xinhua