News (engl.)

Regionalliga Bayern side FV Illertissen missed out on another upset in the second round of the DFB-Pokal. The lowest-ranked team left in the competition were beaten 3-0 by second-tier outfit 1. FC Magdeburg on Wednesday evening.

Elsewhere, Bayer Leverkusen needed extra time to overcome second-division side SC Paderborn 4-2 despite playing with an extra man for a long stretch. Defending champions VfB Stuttgart came out on top in their Bundesliga clash with Mainz, winning 2-0, while 1. FC Kaiserslautern also reached the round of 16 thanks to a 1-0 win away to fellow second-tier side Greuther Fürth.

Comfortable win for Magdeburg

Illertissen started well and kept Magdeburg at bay early on, but the second-division side found a way through in the 11th minute. Alexander Nollenberger whipped a cross in from deep and Maximilian Breunig rose to nod the ball into the bottom-left corner. The visitors pushed for a second, with Rayan Ghrieb forcing a save from Malwin Zok with a shot from 17 metres (16’). Breunig then saw another powerful header kept out by Zok (25’), but the keeper was beaten shortly afterwards. Zok initially saved a penalty from Breunig, but Marcus Mathisen was on hand to slot home the rebound (31’). Baris Atik had a promising chance soon after but couldn’t get a shot away (35’). Illertissen’s first effort came just before the break – Eduard Heckmann fired a free-kick on target from 20 metres, but Dominik Reimann saved comfortably (43’).

Magdeburg continued to dominate after the restart. Breunig hit the crossbar following a cut-back from Ghrieb (50’), and Nollenberger was denied by Zok ten minutes later. Illertissen also had a sight of goal as Daniel Hausmann volleyed a corner onto the roof of the net (69’). The visitors sealed the result in the 83rd minute with a clever free-kick routine: Noah Pesch collected the ball inside the box, cut inside and fired low into the far corner. Breunig had one last chance to grab a second in stoppage time, but his shot missed the target after Zok’s initial save (90’).

Holders Stuttgart win in Mainz

Just three days after their Bundesliga meeting, Stuttgart came out on top once more in a cup clash with Mainz, this time with a 2-0 victory. It took just over five minutes for the visitors to go ahead, with Luca Jaquez heading home from close range after a corner from Bilal El Khannouss. Stuttgart remained in control, while Mainz’s first real opening came in the 25th minute, when Nadiem Amiri tested Fabian Bredlow with a low drive. The away side kept pressing and had a great chance to double their lead before the break. Badredine Bouanani won the ball high up the pitch and forced a near-post save from Robin Zentner, while Angelo Stiller’s follow-up was cleared off the line by Dominik Kohr (45+2’).

Seconds after the restart, Stuttgart threatened again. El Khannouss hit team-mate Maximilian Mittelstädt with his shot, Mainz failed to clear, and Deniz Undav curled his effort just wide of the post (47’). Both coaches then made a series of changes, which gave Mainz some attacking impetus – though without creating clear chances. It was Stuttgart who struck next: Undav tried to find Stiller inside the box, but the ball ran through for Atakan Karazor, who calmly finished into the far corner (73’). Josha Vagnoman tested Zentner once more (77’) before the visitors saw out the win professionally to book their place in the next round.

Late drama as Leverkusen edge Paderborn

There was a true cup battle in Paderborn, where Leverkusen eventually came through after extra time, despite having a man advantage from the 58th minute onwards. Paderborn defender Felix Götze was shown a straight red card for a professional foul and Alejandro Grimaldo converted the resulting free-kick with a stunning strike (60’). The hosts refused to give in and were rewarded in the 90th minute when Stefano Marino equalised.

Paderborn then took a shock lead in extra time through Sven Michel (96’), but Jarell Quansah levelled deep into first-half stoppage time (105+1’). Ibrahim Maza struck again in the dying moments (120+2’) and Aleix Garcia made it 4-2 soon after (120+4’) to seal the win for the 2023/24 Pokal winners.

Kaiserslautern get the better of Fürth

Naatan Skyttä gave Kaiserslautern an early lead in Fürth (12’), and the Red Devils defended their advantage with everything they had. The hosts kept pushing, but a second yellow card for Omar Syllah in stoppage time (90+4’) capped a frustrating night as Fürth were knocked out.