Football
Borussia Dortmund’s crisis has worsened. After recent disappointments in the German Bundesliga and Champions League, BVB crashed out of the DFB Cup in the second round. Dortmund had to concede a 0-1 defeat to VfL Wolfsburg after extra time on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Christoph Baumgartner shined with a goal and an assist as RB Leipzig advanced to the round of 16.
Wolfsburg coach Ralf Hasenhut was able to celebrate the win at home, as did striker Patrick Wimmer, who remained on the pitch until the 70th minute when Dortmund suffered a further setback. The hapless Marcel Sabitzer came on as a substitute in the 99th minute and was not involved in the decisive goal due to a miss by “Joker” Jonas Wind (116th). For BVB, a run of 16 appearances spanning 13 rounds ended with their third consecutive competitive defeat.
On the other hand, two-time cup winners RB Leipzig are in the round of last 16. The Saxons had to shake at times against newly promoted FC St. Pauli, but in the end they won 4:2 (3:1). Baumgartner played a big part in the win. The ÖFB teammate scored with an unchallenged header in the 17th minute to make it 3-1 after a 2-0 double by Yussuf Poulsen.
Baumgartner was replaced in the 69th minute, with Nicolas Seewald and Saver Schlager still missing due to injuries. David Nemetz was only a replacement for the losers. Poulsen once again showed himself to be a DFB Cup specialist, with 14 goals and 15 assists after 34 games. Leipzig are doing better than last season, when they were eliminated in the second round.
Leverkusen continued to play with ease
Defending champions Bayer Leverkusen showed no weakness in their 3-0 home win over second division side SV Elversberg. Striker Patrick Schick brace (2nd, 9th) and Aleix Garcia (36th/free kick) made it all clear before the break. Stuttgart, on the other hand, defeated last year’s finalists Kaiserslautern 2-1 (1-1) after a hard fought match.
FC Augsburg progressed to the last 16 with a 3-0 win over struggling second division club Schalke 04. Augsburg’s next win came three days after a league home win over Borussia Dortmund, with Schalke losing their third match. The game was the third loss under new coach Kees van Wonderen.
Cologne fired the key
Kickers Offenbach, the last remaining regional league team, lost 2–0 to second division side Karlsruher SC (without Christoph Cobalt). Two other second division teams have already been confirmed for the round of 16. 1. FC Köln surprisingly 3-0 (1-0) against newly-promoted first division Holstein Kiel, SSV Jan Regensburg beat SPVgg in the first game since the coach was sacked. Joe Enochs Grüther Furth won 1-0 (0-0) despite being outnumbered for a long time. Round 16 will be held on 3/4. Played in December, the draw is on Sunday.
