Manuel Gräfe Critiques Tapsoba's Penalty Miss in Stuttgart Win
Former referee Manuel Gräfe did not bother with euphemisms. Looking back at Edmond Tapsoba’s challenge on Angelo Stiller, he called it what he believed it was: a clear red card and a penalty, missed in real time.
Since Tapsoba had reached the ball first, Gräfe admitted the situation was “difficult to spot”. The defender’s timing on the initial touch was fine. What followed, in Gräfe’s eyes, was anything but.
“You have to at least turn your studs away afterwards. You can't just say: 'I played the ball, so the rest doesn't matter.' When you charge in like that and catch an opponent on the fibula with your studs, causing the leg to buckle at the ankle, it's a serious health risk—penalty and red card," he wrote on X, putting the spotlight firmly on the follow-through rather than the first contact.
Stiller needed only brief treatment and was able to continue, a small miracle given the description of the impact. The incident, though, set the tone for a turbulent afternoon for Tapsoba.
Because his problems did not end there.
Shortly before half-time, the Bayer Leverkusen defender clumsily brought down VfB striker Ermedin Demirovic in the box. This time there was no debate: penalty given. Maxi Mittelstädt stepped up and buried the spot-kick, flipping the match and handing the Swabians a deserved 2-1 lead.
Stuttgart never let go of that advantage. As Leverkusen pushed and the tension rose, Deniz Undav delivered the late punch to make it 3-1, a goal that felt bigger than a simple insurance strike. It nudged VfB a significant step closer to the Champions League, a competition that had felt distant not so long ago.
The table now crackles with jeopardy heading into the final matchday. VfB Stuttgart sit level on points with fourth-placed TSG Hoffenheim. Everything rests on one last swing of the season.
On Saturday, Stuttgart welcome Eintracht Frankfurt, with a raucous home crowd ready to drag them over the line. Hoffenheim, meanwhile, must navigate a tricky trip to Gladbach. Bayer Leverkusen, watching that duel unfold, can only hope the results tilt their way and then take care of business themselves against Hamburg SV if they want to sneak into the Champions League places.
Even Undav gave Stuttgart a brief fright. In the 68th minute, the forward went down and signalled that he could not continue, forcing Sebastian Hoeneß into a change and briefly draining the noise from the stands. The relief came quickly.
"He'd already been feeling some discomfort during the week. It won't be an injury, but he realised it was getting worse," Hoeneß said afterwards, easing fears of a longer absence.
Stiller stayed on. Undav received the all-clear. The win stood. Now comes the real test: ninety more minutes to decide whether this surge ends with a Champions League anthem or a lingering sense of what might have been.
