Eating in luck – Mainz crisis getting worse

Berlin –

Rot-Weiss Essen is the biggest surprise among the 14 finalists of the DFB Cup so far. The fourth division sank into joy after the 3-2 coup against Fortuna Düsseldorf on Wednesday evening.

In addition to the Essen team, eight Bundesliga and five second division teams made it to the next round.

EARLY GIFTS: RWE had to wait twelve years for such a success, now the victory in the cup crowned a sporty and strong 2020. The leaders of the Regionalliga West did not lose a single competitive game in the past twelve months. In round one, the Essen team had already taken Arminia Bielefeld by surprise 1-0. “I told the boys to sign out at home. Christmas will be celebrated a little later, ”said RWE coach Christian Neidhart. A few incorrigible people from the Essen appendix probably misunderstood this and moved to the empty stadium with Bengalos.

BEFORE THE RELEASE: For Jan-Moritz Lichte, his first cup game as Mainz head coach could have been the last. Despite a 2-0 lead, the Rheinhessen failed in the end on penalties at the second division VfL Bochum. Because the results of the second-to-last in the Bundesliga are not correct either, Lichte is facing the end. “The decision will be made around Christmas,” announced CEO Stefan Hofmann. A job guarantee sounds different.

STILL IN THIS: Werder Bremen gave Hannover 96 no chance in the 3-0 win, VfL Wolfsburg also made it easy in the 4-0 win against SV Sandhausen. VfB Stuttgart had to stretch a little more in the 1-0 derby against SC Freiburg. The first division clubs Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig, FC Schalke 04, Borussia Mönchengladbach and 1. FC Köln made it through on Tuesday. In addition to Bochum, Jahn Regensburg, SC Paderborn, SpVgg Greuther Fürth and SC Darmstadt 98 are from the 2nd division.

STILL OPEN: The second cup round will not be completed until the new year. FC Bayern and Bayer Leverkusen had obtained permission to postpone their games in recent months because of the high stresses on their teams. The Werkself will face Eintracht Frankfurt on January 12th, and the defending champion from Munich will visit the second division Holstein Kiel a day later.

THE WAY TO THE FINAL: The round of 16 will be drawn on January 3rd as part of the ARD “Sportschau”. Losfee is then the former ski jumping star Sven Hannawald. The next round will be played on February 2nd and 3rd, the quarter-finals will follow a month later. The semi-finals are scheduled for May 1st and 2nd. The final in the Berlin Olympic Stadium will take place on May 13th.

© dpa-infocom, dpa: 201224-99-803627 / 4 (dpa)

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