RB Leipzig only managed the first task on the way to the desired hat-trick of titles in the DFB Cup with difficulty and left themselves a lot of room for improvement for the top Bundesliga game against FC Bayern.
Four days before the showdown with the German record champions from Munich, the Champions League participant won his first round game against second division soccer team SV Wehen Wiesbaden 3:2 (2:1) and thus reached the second round, which will be drawn next Sunday.
Emil Forsberg in the 7th minute and Benjamin Sesko twice (18th/70th) scored the goals for Leipzig in front of 12,100 spectators, who have now been unbeaten in 13 cup games. The last cup defeat for the time being dates back to May 2021, when RB lost the final against Borussia Dortmund. Ivan Prtajin (41st/73rd) scored twice for the bravely fighting Hessians.
Leipzig goalkeeper Gulasci is celebrating a comeback
“We expected that. Wiesbaden makes it difficult for the opponent. They are powerful, physically very strong. In the end, what counts is that we got further. (…) Today we allowed more. We play every three days. That can happen,” said Leipzig goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi, who celebrated his comeback after almost a year out due to a torn cruciate ligament, on ARD: “If you don’t play for twelve months, it’s not that easy. After such a serious injury, here standing is not a given.”
On the Wiesbaden side, Sascha Mockenhaupt spoke to Sky about a “difficult feeling” because the sensation was not far away. “I’m actually annoyed that we were kicked out,” said the captain, who was nevertheless “proud” of the performance.
Leipzig’s coach Marco Rose used the guest appearance at the second division promoted team to make a big rotation of personnel. The 47-year-old changed his starting lineup to six positions compared to the recent 1-0 win at Borussia Mönchengladbach.
For striker Timo Werner, who scored the winning goal in Gladbach, his first starting eleven appearance this season was unsuccessful. The national player did not even make the trip to the Hessian capital because of persistent back problems. “Timo is going through a difficult phase at the moment. We are all trying to support him,” said Rose on ARD before kick-off.
Sesko counter preview
Despite the many personnel changes, the Saxons dominated the game and took the lead early on. After SVWW goalkeeper Florian Stritzel was able to fend off a header from Yussuf Poulsen, Forsberg hammered the follow-up shot under the crossbar.
The home team hardly had any organized offensive action, but they still had a chance through Hyun-Ju Lee (14th). However, Gulacsi parried the South Korean’s shot. On the other side, Stritzel prevented the second goal from being conceded with a double save against Sesko and Poulsen, but it came shortly afterwards. This time Sesko aimed better, preceded by a catastrophic bad pass from Wehen’s Marcus Mathisen.
Despite the early setbacks, Wiesbaden didn’t give up and were rewarded for their efforts shortly before half-time. After a pass from Martin Angha, Prtajin lobbed the ball over Gulacsi and into the net.
After the change, the guests dominated the game, but were largely harmless. Only Sesko found a gap in the dense Hessian defense with a brilliant shot into the corner, which Prtajin countered just 120 seconds later. But it wasn’t enough for the Wiesbaden team because Gulacsi parried a shot from Julius Kade shortly before the end (88th).
