It was all smiles in the end for Hannover 96, but they sure did it the hard way...
It was all smiles in the end for Hannover 96, but they sure did it the hard way...

Hannover's four-goal salvo leaves Stuttgart reeling

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Stuttgart - Hannover 96 recovered from 2-0 down to record a remarkable 4-2 win away at VfB Stuttgart on Sunday evening.

Gentner again

Arthur Sobiech set the comeback wheels in motion, following first-half strikes from Stuttgart duo Christian Gentner and Vedad Ibisevic, before a Jan Schlaudraff penalty and substitute Mohammed Abdellaoue's brace completed the unlikeliest of second-half turnarounds.

The Reds had plenty of purpose about their game in the early stages, with Mame Diouf passing up a decent opening after the Stuttgart back four had been cut in two by a wonderful passing move. When the home side did come forward, it was no surprise to see Diouf's attacking counterpart Ibisevic throwing himself about the place in the Hannover area.

Stuttgart were beginnng to find their stride, and only a pair of superb saves from Ron-Robert Zieler prevented Bruno Labbadia's men from taking the lead. Hannover's last line of defence was breached in the 21st minute, though, as Gentner collected Raphael Holzhauer's raking right-wing cross and tucked the ball into the far corner for his second goal in as many home games.

Spot on


Holzhauer was enjoying himself going forward, but a rush of blood at the back almost cost his side dearly as his wayward pass fell straight to the grateful Diouf, whose 18-yard drive came back off the inside of the post and rolled across goal to safety, before Stuttgart doubled their lead.

Again using the right-hand side to devastating effect, Gentner cut into the area, only to have his legs taken by Szabolcs Hustzi. The Hungarian was rather fortunate to avoid a second booking, but it mattered not for die Schwaben, with Ibisevic punctuating a fine half's work by sending Zieler the wrong way from the spot.

Comeback


A touch of good fortune offered Hannover an unlikely route back into the contest after the restart, and was ceased in emphatic fashion. Shaking off Ibrahima Traore, Lars Stindl sent in a low cross that Sven Ulreich could only palm straight to Sobiech, who slammed into the roof of the net with little over half an hour left on the clock.

The comeback was complete when Schlaudraff sent a coolly-taken penalty out of Ulreich's reach into the top corner to level ten minutes later, before the floodgates well and truly opened. Abdellaoue's predatory strike and tamely-struck penalty crowned a barmy 16-minute spell, with Hannover recording only their second away win of the campaign and Stuttgart tasting defeat for the first time in five Bundesliga outings.

Line-ups and statistics

Christopher Mayer-Lodge