Stuttgart will be left to rue two points that got away after they were held to a draw by Romanian champions Unirea Urziceni. The Germans dominated the game for long stretches and had the lead through Serdar Tasci after just five minutes. But they failed to convert any of a plethora of chances that followed, allowing Unirea to grab a point through Dacian Varga early in the second half. Prior to the match, Stuttgart coach Markus Babbel had warned his side not to expect the Romanians to be a push over, but they could have been forgiven for thinking they might be in for an easy night as they dominated the early stages. Roberto Hilbert had already lashed a powerful shot just wide when Tasci put them ahead after less than five minutes, firing in from point-blank range to leave Giedrius Arlauskis with no chance. And the onslaught did not let up. Just moments later Ciprian Marica sent a shot narrowly over the bar, and the hosts were lucky not to concede a second in the 13th minute when Arlauskis fumbled Sami Khedira's shot before collecting at the second attempt. Tomas Hitzlsperger sent a trademark piledriver just wide of the net and Arthur Boka then saw his shot charged down by George Galamaz. The hosts had to wait until the half-hour mark for their own first sight of goal, but Vasile Maftei sent his shot over the bar from close range. However, the Romanian champions would make Stuttgart pay for their missed chances two minutes into the second half as Dacian Varga curled a shot into the far corner of the net from the edge of the area. Stuttgart sought an immediate response, but Timo Gebhart's header was held by Arlauskis a minute later. The goalkeeper's dodgy handling returned in the 54th minute as he failed to hold a Pavel Pogrebniak shot, but again Unirea escaped any damage. Stuttgart had been awakened by the equaliser, and continued to press forward with Marica wasting a pair of chances, seeing his first shot blocked before then firing over the crossbar. Raul Rusescu headed over for Unirea but it was a rare chance for the hosts as Stuttgart maintained the lion's share of possession. They could do little to make it count however, as Gebhart saw his shot held by Arlauskis. The hosts still posed a risk on the break, a fact that Sorin Frunza provided a reminder of as he flashed a shot just over the crossbar as the game moved into the final 10 minutes. But it was Stuttgart who continued to create the most chances, and Hilbert wasted another fine one when Hitzlsperger's cross found him just yards from goal but he blazed a shot over the crossbar. Hitzlsperger followed suit with another high shot, and Stuttgart's chance of victory was gone.

Dan Petrescu, coach of Unirea Urziceni: "The first home match from Champions League was very difficult. The result from the break wasn't deserved. We received goal too easy and the players suffered a lot for that. I told the boys at halftime that if we increase pressure we will score. With a bit more inspiration we could have won. I actually regret that we lost two points today. We must be more confident and we must win the next match from own field. After the match I congratulated the players and I told them that I am proud to be their coach".