RB Leipzig completed the foursome for the semifinals of the German Cup after beating Borussia Dortmund 2-0 in the last game of the quarterfinals, played this Wednesday, and will be alongside Sttutgart, Eintracht Frankfurt and Freiburg in the next phase. The most anticipated duel of the quarterfinals was decided with goals from Timo Werner (22′) and Willi Orban (90+8′).
Leipzig will have the opportunity to qualify for their fourth final since 2019 and try to defend the title they won last season.
The first half at Leipzig’s Red Bull Arena had a clear dominance by the home team and after just three minutes, the team led by Marco Rose had the first chance to score, in a shot by the Hungarian Dominik Szoboszlai that Gregory Kobel sent for a corner.
The Dortmund goalkeeper returned to defend his team with two shots from the Spaniard Dani Olmo (6′ and 12′), but he couldn’t avoid the first goal of the game, in a pass from Szoboszlai to Werner and the former Chelsea striker pushed for the back of the net (22′).
Olmo, one of the highlights of his team, almost scored the second before the break, but his first shot was saved by Kobel (34′).
The journey goes on! ????#DFBPokal #RBLBVB pic.twitter.com/gQfDgdTvVO
— RB Leipzig English (@RBLeipzig_EN) April 5, 2023
The second half of Leipzig and Borussia Dortmund
Dortmund coach Edin Terzic tried to change the dynamics of the game with two of his regulars, Youssoufa Moukoko and Jude Bellingham, entering the field after the break. But Leipzig not only defended well, leaving the opponent with no options to reach the goal with danger, as they were closer to expanding, as when Kobel made another save in a shot from close range by Konrad Laimer (78′).
Leipzig’s good pressure and the good positioning of their players on the field prevented Dortmund from getting closer in search of an equalizer, except in the last minutes, when Janis Blaswich sent a dangerous shot by Bynoe-Gittens (90+7′) to a corner.
And in the corner, with Kobel in the opponent’s area desperately looking for the equalizer, Leipzig recovered the ball and Willi Orban secured the victory and the classification scoring the second (90 + 8).
Stuttgart eliminate Nuremberg
Earlier, Stuttgart, bottom of the Bundesliga and with a new coach, qualified for the semifinals of the German Cup by beating Nuremberg away from home by 1-0, thanks to a goal by Frenchman Enzo Millot in the final stretch (83′) .
That goal, in addition to guaranteeing a place in the next phase, allowed Sebastian Hoennes to make his debut in charge of Stuttgart with a victory, two days after being called to replace Bruno Labbadia, who was sacked due to poor results.
Despite the problems in the German championship, Stuttgart will seek its seventh Cup final, a tournament that it has already won three times (1954, 1958 and 1997).
The match was initially scheduled for 18:00 local time (13:00 GMT), but had to be postponed by half an hour due to the massive turnout of fans at the Max-Morlock stadium, which was sold out (with 50,000 spectators).
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