BERLIN,21 May (AP) — Japan midfielder Wataru Endo scored one goal and set up another as Stuttgart moved out of the Bundesliga’s relegation zone with a 4-1 win in Mainz on Sunday.
Stuttgart, previously second from bottom, moved ahead of Bochum (32 points) on goal difference and one point above Schalke with one round of the league remaining. Hertha Berlin, last on 26 points, was relegated Saturday.
Stuttgart had to recover after conceding in the 23rd minute, when Marcus Ingvartsen scored from close range after a Mainz corner.
Endo equalized on a counterattack after another Mainz corner in the 41st, when Silas Katompa Mvumpa raced clear and ran half the length of the field before crossing for Serhou Guirassy. Mainz defender Edimilson Fernandes cut out the cross, but Endo stopped the ball with his left boot and volleyed it in with his right.
Chris Führich came on as a substitute in the 62nd, set up Guirassy with a corner for Stuttgart’s second goal in the 64th, then scored himself in the 78th, after being set up by Endo.
Führich wasn’t done yet, setting up Tanguy Coulibaly to complete the scoring in injury time.
Borussia Dortmund could move top with one round remaining with a win at Augsburg later Sunday, before Bayer Leverkusen hosted Borussia Mönchengladbach to complete the penultimate round.