DFB Cup - Cup exit in Berlin: HSV between frustration and positive thinking
They came close to advancing twice, but in the end the Hamburger SV players were left with nothing but frustration. "I can't explain it. That simply shouldn't happen to a top team," said midfielder Jonas Meffert after the dramatic round of 16 exit in the DFB Cup at second division rivals Hertha BSC in Berlin. "I don't know how we didn't manage to win here."
Hamburg had led 2:1 until the 90th minute, when the outstanding Fabian Reese scored to make it 2:2 and save the Berliners from going into extra time. In extra time, Ransford Yeboah Königsdörffer (102') put the visitors back in front with his goal to make it 3-2. Once again it was not enough for the visitors, as Jonjoe Kenny equalized for Hertha seconds before the end. In the penalty shoot-out, only Königsdörffer was denied by Berlin goalkeeper Tjark Ernst, while the hosts converted all five shots from the spot to win 5:3.
While the Berliners cheered and the financial managers of the capital city club were delighted to have received around 1.7 million euros for their quarter-final appearance, the HSV players stood dejectedly on the pitch in the cool chamber of the Olympic Stadium.
"It hurts a lot," said Meffert. Cup goalkeeper Matheo Raab said: "It's a blow when you lead twice here and it looks like you're going to reach the next round, but then you get a blow like that." Penalty shoot-outs are a "fifty-fifty chance, we simply should have decided it beforehand".
Nevertheless, some Hamburg players tried to take positives from the game. Coach Tim Walter had made seven changes to his starting line-up compared to the city derby last Friday at FC St. Pauli (2:2).
Cheered on by around 15,000 fans among the 59,000 spectators, the newly formed team managed to turn the game around after Reese had made it 0:1 (21st) thanks to goals from Immanuel Pherai (31st) and Laszlo Benes (43rd). And the players also showed that the squad is well-staffed.
"Even though we've been knocked out of the cup, we can take a lot with us," said captain and defensive boss Sebastian Schonlau, who played for the first time since mid-September following his calf injury. "It was a decent game from us. There was a lot of fight and a lot of mentality. And we came back after going 1-0 down."
Coach Walter was pragmatic. "In one situation, we weren't as consistent as we had been half an hour earlier. That's what happens," said the 48-year-old about the late 3:3. "In penalty shoot-outs, soccer is a game of vabanque. We had to experience that today." However, he was encouraged by the way his team played, he said. "But we have to reward ourselves more."
Walter's team do not have much time to be frustrated. The 2nd Bundesliga match against SC Paderborn is already scheduled for Saturday (13:00/Sky). The third-placed team in the table will then be back in the promotion battle. And HSV have yet to concede a point in their own stadium this season.
Cup round Coach team HSV Squad HSV Match schedule HSV Table 2nd Bundesliga
Read also:
- Will he be convicted as Jutta's murderer after 37 years?
- He also wanted to kill his cousin
- With live stream! Gawkers film dying man
- Is Saarland threatened with economic collapse?
Source: www.stern.de
