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E-mail Xinhua, December 5, 2024
Lois Openda's double led RB Leipzig to a 3-0 victory, ending Eintracht Frankfurt's seven-game winning streak in their German Cup last-16 clash on Wednesday.
After going seven games without a win, Leipzig emerged highly motivated, putting Frankfurt under intense pressure from the start. Benjamin Henrichs' dangerous free kick was blocked by the wall three minutes into the game, and Benjamin Sesko's powerful shot was saved eight minutes later.
Frankfurt struggled to cope with Leipzig's relentless pressure in the early stages. Willi Orban forced a save from Kevin Trapp, and Lois Openda had a goal ruled out for offside shortly afterward.
Leipzig finally broke the deadlock at the half-hour mark when Antonio Nusa's build-up play set up Sesko, who rounded Trapp elegantly before slotting home from close range.
After the restart, Frankfurt continued to struggle to establish a rhythm, while Leipzig clinically doubled their lead. Nusa pounced on a loose ball after a turnover and set up Openda, who finished from ten meters out just five minutes into the second half.
Despite making several substitutions, Frankfurt posed little threat in front of Leipzig's goal. Leipzig, on the other hand, kept pressing and made it 3-0 on the hour mark when Openda unleashed a powerful shot from long range that found the top left-hand corner of the net.
Leipzig's third goal effectively sealed the result with 30 minutes remaining, and Frankfurt barely managed to challenge Leipzig in their territory.
The hosts even had opportunities to extend their lead further, but neither Henrichs nor substitute Andre Silva could find the back of the net.
"So much can happen in football. I don't think anyone really thought we could do anything today. The boys did a great job. We got into a situation that wasn't good for us. We did a lot of things better today than we did in the last few weeks," said under-pressure Leipzig coach Marco Rose.
Elsewhere, Wolfsburg also secured a spot in the quarterfinals, with second-half goals from Denis Vavro, Jonas Wind, and Yannick Gerhardt earning a 3-0 victory over Hoffenheim. Dejan Ljubicic's injury-time penalty gave Cologne a dramatic 2-1 win over Hertha Berlin, while Augsburg came from behind to defeat resilient lower league side Karlsruhe 5-4 on penalties after a 2-2 draw.
