Bielefeld Shocks Leverkusen in German Cup Semifinals
In a surprising turn of events, third-tier Arminia Bielefeld defeated reigning champions Bayer Leverkusen 2-1 on Tuesday, overcoming an early deficit to secure a place in the DFB-Pokal final for the first time in the club's history. Bielefeld,...
TroibNews 
In a surprising turn of events, third-tier Arminia Bielefeld defeated reigning champions Bayer Leverkusen 2-1 on Tuesday, overcoming an early deficit to secure a place in the DFB-Pokal final for the first time in the club's history.
Bielefeld, who have impressively eliminated four Bundesliga teams in successive rounds of the tournament, has now become the fourth third-tier club to reach the German Cup final.
"I am so proud of the team," Bielefeld's coach Michel Kniat said. "The whole region is feeling this. No one will be sleeping tonight. We defended with a lot of passion and that was the key. We worked extremely hard. It was great to go into the break with the lead and in the second half we kept up the pressure for what was a deserved win."
Leverkusen, under the guidance of coach Xabi Alonso, had not previously lost a German Cup match. They initially took the lead in the 17th minute through a tap-in from Jonathan Tah at the back post following a corner.
However, their lead was short-lived as Marius Woerl quickly equalized for Bielefeld just three minutes later, firing a low shot past keeper Lukas Hradecky.
Hradecky demonstrated his skills with a remarkable save in the 26th minute, blocking a close-range shot from Sarenren Bazee, but Bielefeld managed to complete their comeback right before halftime with a close-range volley from Maximilian Grosser.
The hosts maintained relentless pressure after the break, creating multiple chances, while Leverkusen's Patrik Schick struck the post with a header in the 81st minute.
Despite their previous season of glory—winning both the league and cup without a defeat—Leverkusen now finds themselves in second place in the Bundesliga, six points behind leaders Bayern Munich with seven league games left to play.
"It is hard to say what went wrong so shortly after the game but when we say that Bielefeld deserved to reach the final then that means we did a lot of things wrong," stated Leverkusen's midfielder Robert Andrich.
"We were missing all our usual strengths," he continued. "We could not have an impact up front and we made far too many mistakes at the back. It was clearly our worst game this season. We have to accept that we messed it up."
In the other semifinal matchup, VfB Stuttgart is set to face RB Leipzig on Wednesday.
Emily Johnson for TROIB News
Bielefeld, who have impressively eliminated four Bundesliga teams in successive rounds of the tournament, has now become the fourth third-tier club to reach the German Cup final.
"I am so proud of the team," Bielefeld's coach Michel Kniat said. "The whole region is feeling this. No one will be sleeping tonight. We defended with a lot of passion and that was the key. We worked extremely hard. It was great to go into the break with the lead and in the second half we kept up the pressure for what was a deserved win."
Leverkusen, under the guidance of coach Xabi Alonso, had not previously lost a German Cup match. They initially took the lead in the 17th minute through a tap-in from Jonathan Tah at the back post following a corner.
However, their lead was short-lived as Marius Woerl quickly equalized for Bielefeld just three minutes later, firing a low shot past keeper Lukas Hradecky.
Hradecky demonstrated his skills with a remarkable save in the 26th minute, blocking a close-range shot from Sarenren Bazee, but Bielefeld managed to complete their comeback right before halftime with a close-range volley from Maximilian Grosser.
The hosts maintained relentless pressure after the break, creating multiple chances, while Leverkusen's Patrik Schick struck the post with a header in the 81st minute.
Despite their previous season of glory—winning both the league and cup without a defeat—Leverkusen now finds themselves in second place in the Bundesliga, six points behind leaders Bayern Munich with seven league games left to play.
"It is hard to say what went wrong so shortly after the game but when we say that Bielefeld deserved to reach the final then that means we did a lot of things wrong," stated Leverkusen's midfielder Robert Andrich.
"We were missing all our usual strengths," he continued. "We could not have an impact up front and we made far too many mistakes at the back. It was clearly our worst game this season. We have to accept that we messed it up."
In the other semifinal matchup, VfB Stuttgart is set to face RB Leipzig on Wednesday.
Emily Johnson for TROIB News
Interested in more international Sports news? Visit TROIB Sports
