VfB Stuttgart were held to a 1-1 draw at home by Czech champions Sparta Prague in a thrilling Champions League encounter on Tuesday.
Sparta’s midfielder, Kaan Kairinen, netted an equalizer after Enzo Millot had given the German side an early lead.
Stuttgart, who were last season’s Bundesliga runners-up, struck first against the run of play in the seventh minute.
Millot headed home an excellent lofted cross from Maximilian Mittelstädt, putting the hosts ahead early on.
Despite conceding, Sparta refused to back down, applying pressure high up the pitch. Martin Vitík came close to leveling for the visitors when he hit the post shortly after the opener.
It was Kairinen who eventually restored parity, curling a brilliant free kick into the top-right corner just after the half-hour mark.
Sparta could have taken the lead through midfielder Veljko Birmančević, who missed two key chances, one before and another after the break.
Stuttgart, making their return to the Champions League for the first time since the 2009-10 season, looked the stronger side in the second half but failed to convert their dominance into a winner.
They will hope to build on their improved performance, following their 3-1 defeat against Real Madrid in the previous round, when they visit Juventus on October 22.
Meanwhile, Sparta Prague, who impressed with a 3-0 victory over Salzburg in their opening fixture—marking the first time a Czech team has scored three goals on matchday one—next face the reigning champions Manchester City.
In another fixture, French underdogs Brest continued their remarkable debut Champions League campaign with a commanding 4-0 win away at Red Bull Salzburg.
Brest, competing in Europe for the first time after their best-ever third-place finish in Ligue 1 last season, had already made an impression with a 2-1 win over Austrian champions Sturm Graz in their opening match.
Abdallah Sima was the star of the show once again, netting twice. The Senegalese forward, who is on loan from English Premier League side Brighton, had already made headlines in their first game by scoring the match-winner against Graz.
This time, Sima opened the scoring midway through the first half, finishing a swift counter-attack after being set up by Ludovic Ajorque.
Brest’s goalkeeper, Marco Bizot, played a pivotal role, making several crucial saves, while Salzburg had a goal disallowed by VAR with the score still at 0-0. Brest then took full control of the match in the second half, scoring three goals in just 10 minutes.
Mahdi Camara doubled their lead on 66 minutes after a low cross from Mama Baldé caught the Salzburg defense off guard.
Sima added his second soon after, pouncing on a rebound after Hugo Magnetti’s shot was parried by goalkeeper Janis Blaswich.
Substitute Mathias Pereira Lage completed the rout, firing a low shot into the corner with his first touch after coming off the bench.
Brest’s emphatic victory saw them make history as the first French club outside of Paris Saint-Germain to win a Champions League match by four goals or more since Lyon’s 7-1 thrashing of Dinamo Zagreb in 2011.
This win leaves Brest with a perfect record after two matches in their first-ever Champions League group stage, a stunning achievement for the team from Brittany.
