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Borussia Dortmund advanced to the last 16 of the German Cup on Tuesday by eliminating Eintracht Frankfurt in the second round with a 4-2 victory on penalties, following a 1-1 draw. Dortmund executed their penalties perfectly, with Fabio Silva, Niklas Suele, Carney Chukwuemeka, and Felix Nmecha all scoring. On the other hand, Frankfurt’s Ritsu Doan and Fares Chaibi missed their attempts. Frankfurt took the lead in the seventh minute with Mario Goetze and Ansgar Knauff, both former Dortmund players, combining effectively. Goetze’s pass breached Dortmund’s defence, setting up Knauff to score. Dortmund equalised three minutes after the break when Julian Brandt tapped in a precise cross from Julian Ryerson. The match went into extra time, where Germany striker Jonathan Burkardt appeared to secure victory for Frankfurt with a goal in the 115th minute, which was ruled out for offside. In the penalty shootout, Can Uzun and former Chelsea striker Michy Batshuayi scored for Frankfurt, but Doan sent his shot over the bar. Chaibi needed to score Frankfurt’s fourth penalty to stay in the match but shot directly at Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel, ensuring Dortmund’s progression. “We’ve got a sensational goalie and plenty of good penalty shooters. It feels nice,” Brandt told reporters. This match was a rematch of the 2017 German Cup final, where Dortmund won 2-1, with current Borussia coach Niko Kovac then managing Frankfurt. Elsewhere, two-time winners RB Leipzig secured a 4-1 win at Energie Cottbus, with Johan Bakayoko and Christoph Baumgartner each scoring twice. In other matches, Bochum defeated top-flight Augsburg 1-0 away, and Borussia Moenchengladbach triumphed 3-1 at home against Karlsruhe. Hertha Berlin beat Elversberg 3-0 in Berlin, Hamburg won 1-0 at Heidenheim, and second-division Holstein Kiel edged out Wolfsburg 1-0. On Wednesday, 20-time winners Bayern Munich travel to Cologne, while holders Stuttgart play at Mainz. With AFP Inputs
