- In the second round of Bundesliga, a solitary first-team player eventually falls short.
Bochum's Bundesliga Firsts: Early DFB-Pokal Exit Against Regensburg
Bochum became the first Bundesliga team to bow out of the DFB-Pokal in the initial round, suffering a 0:1 (0:0) defeat at the hands of 2. Bundesliga contender SSV Jahn Regensburg, approximately 12 weeks after their nail-biting relegation reprieve. On the other end, FC Augsburg managed to pull through, prevailing 4:1 against Regionalliga opponent Viktoria Berlin after trailing early on.
Over the past week, out of the 13 Bundesliga frontrunners, 12 made it to the second round, leaving only Bochum's subpar performance shattering their tournament aspirations. On August 27 and 28, defending champions VfB Stuttgart (against Preußen Münster) and double titlists Bayer Leverkusen (against Carl Zeiss Jena) will kick off their campaigns.
Opportunistic Goal Propels Regensburg's DFB-Pokal Triumph
Regensburg's center-back Florian Ballas netted the decisive goal in the 70th minute, putting his team up 1:0 against Bochum. Playing home before an audience of 12,581 spectators, Regensburg justifiably earned their lead, mirroring Bochum's failure to proceed past the opening round just as last season, when they exited against Arminia Bielefeld via penalties.
In Berlin, Viktoria Berlin took an early 1:0 lead against Augsburg, but the Bundesliga side managed to rebound and clinch victory 4:1. Aidan Liu opened the scoring for the hosts in the 4th minute, but Elvis Rexhbecaj (33'), new recruit Samuel Essende (53'), substitute Niklas Dorsch (87'), and Phillip Tietz (90'+2) ensured Augsburg's success, albeit with a somewhat misleading scoreline. This outcome prevented a shocking early elimination akin to last season's loss against SpVgg Unterhaching.
Fortuna Düsseldorf Stumbles Against Dynamo Dresden
Düsseldorf, another 2. Bundesliga team, stumbled with a 0:2 (0:1) defeat at the hands of 3. Liga competitors Dynamo Dresden. Midfielder Christoph Daferner, who played for Düsseldorf in the second half of last season, gave Dresden the lead in the 17th minute. In front of 29,660 spectators, Robin Meißner solidified the win for Dresden in the 69th minute.
- FC Nürnberg, now led by manager Miroslav Klose, managed to knock out last season's surprise team 1. FC Saarbrücken, requiring a penalty shootout to secure a 5:3 victory after a 1:1 draw in extra time. Goalkeeper Christian Mathenia saved the game-winning penalty from Saarbrücken's captain Manuel Zeitz, a former Nürnberg player.
Comfortable Wins for Hamburg and Hertha
Relegated 1. FC Köln required extra time to edge out 3. Liga opponents SV Sandhausen 3:2 (2:0, 2:2). Manager Gerhard Struber's squad sealed their initial competitive win of the new season, as Mathias Olesen scored the match-winning goal in the 116th minute to avoid a penalty shootout.
Hamburg SV trounced SV Meppen 7:1 (2:0), while Karlsruhe SC emerged victorious 5:0 (2:0) against Sportfreunde Lotte. SV Elversberg proved dominant in their 7:0 (3:0) demolition of VfV 06 Hildesheim, and SC Paderborn secured a 4:0 (1:0) victory against Bremer SV. Hertha BSC clinched a decisive win 5:1 (1:0) against FC Hansa Rostock, playing in lower leagues, while SV Darmstadt moved on to the next round thanks to a 3:1 (2:0) triumph against FC Teutonia Ottensen.
Despite Bochum's early exit in the DFB-Pokal, other Bundesliga teams fared better, with 12 teams advancing to the second round. Regensburg, playing in the 2. Bundesliga, capitalized on Bochum's mistake, securing a 1:0 victory in the cup competition with Florian Ballas scoring the winning goal in the 70th minute.
