Leverkusen clinch late German Cup victory while Stuttgart advance

On Wednesday, Bayer Leverkusen netted two goals past the 120th minute to secure a 4-2 victory over 10-man Paderborn in the German Cup second round, with Bundesliga rivals and defending champions Stuttgart also progressing with ease.

The 2024 German double winners endured a challenging evening that appeared headed for penalties until 19-year-old Ibrahim Maza struck to rescue Leverkusen from embarrassment against their second-division foes, followed by Aleix Garcia adding a final touch of flair to the scoreline.

Prior to that, Alejandro Grimaldo's 60th-minute free-kick for Leverkusen, marking his fourth set-piece goal of the season, had been equalised by Paderborn's Stefano Marino in the dying moments of normal time.

Leverkusen found it hard to overcome their underdog opponents, who had remained unbeaten since August.

During extra time, Paderborn, down to 10 players after a red card just before the hour mark for a foul on the last defender leading to Grimaldo's free-kick, surprisingly went ahead via Sven Michel in the 96th minute.

However, former Liverpool defender Jarell Quansah levelled the scores at 2-2 right before the end of extra time.

Maza then displayed remarkable poise for his age, slotting home from close range in the 122nd minute to put the visitors ahead.

As Paderborn pressed forward in search of a late leveller, Garcia capitalised to score a fourth for Kasper Hjulmand's team.

The 2023-24 cup winners Leverkusen will be accompanied in the next round by holders Stuttgart, who defeated Mainz 2-0 with strikes from Luca Jaquez and skipper Atakan Karazor.

Jaquez, the centre-back, soared to head in a corner after just six minutes. Then, with 73 minutes on the clock, Karazor rifled home on the break following a smart flick from German midfielder Angelo Stiller that deceived the home backline.

In other matches, Magdeburg triumphed 3-0 at fourth-division Illertissen, and 2024 finalists Kaiserslautern edged Greuther Fuerth 1-0.

The Wednesday victors now join Borussia Dortmund, Hertha Berlin, RB Leipzig, Hamburg, St Pauli, Borussia Moenchengladbach, Holstein Kiel, and Bochum in the last 16.

Coming up later on Wednesday, 20-time German Cup champions Bayern Munich face an away trip to Cologne.