Path To The Final
Stuttgart opened their Pokal campaign away to sixth division side SV Falkensee-Finkenkrug. After a two goal halftime lead, Stuttgart turned the screws in the second half and walked away 5-0 winners. The second round saw 2.Bundesliga side St. Pauli visit the Mercedes-Benz Arena only to be turned away after three first half goals from the hosts. The used two quick goals in the first half to edge Köln 2-1 in the third round. Their 2-0 quarterfinal victory over Bochum came easy enough, but it was their semifinal win against Freiburg that stands out. Freiburg were flying high in the league at the time and were the favorites to win the match. Stuttgart put together a solid defensive effort in a 2-1 victory to advance to the final.
Bayern opened the tournament with a 4-0 victory against Jahn Regensburg that didn't get out of hand until late in the second half. The second round also saw a 4-0 victory, this time over Kaiserslautern. Again, it was close until the second half when Bayern finally put them away. The third round match away to Augsburg was a tense affair that saw Ribery sent off for slapping Ja-Cheol Koo. Bayern managed to grab a late goal that saw them advance with a 2-0 scoreline. The final everyone wanted to see happened in the quarterfinals when Bayern edged Borussia Dortmund 1-0 on a strike from Arjen Robben just before halftime. They then put a 6-1 beatdown on Wolfsburg in the semifinals to make it to Saturday's final.
