Heavyweights defeated
July 31, 2011
Soccer heavyweights Bayer Leverkusen and Werder Bremen squandered their chances at the German Cup on Saturday after their surprising defeats at the hands of second and third-division opponents.
Leverkusen, second in the Bundesliga last season, came on strong with a 3-0 lead in the beginning of the match against second-division newcomers Dynamo Dresden. But in a remarkable turn of events, Dresden managed to dig itself out of its hole and win the match 4-3.
Goals from Eren Derdiyok, Sidney Sam and Andre Schürrle secured Leverkusen's comfortable lead, which Dresden subsequently eliminated by forcing extra time and making a winning shot scored by Alexander Schnetzler.
Bremen faced similar misfortune at the hands of the third-division club Heidenheim. Despite initially having a one-goal advantage, Bremen missed its chance at securing a two-goal lead when Markus Marin's weak penalty was denied by Heidenheim's goalie Frank Lehmann.
Christian Sauter and Marc Schnatterer turned the match around completely in Heidenheim's favor after scoring within minutes of each other to secure a 2-1 win over Bremen.
Bundesliga champions Borussia Dortmund, on the other hand, faced no such complications. They soundly defeated third-division Sandhausen 3-0 and will move on to the second round.
On Friday, 2009 champions Wolfsburg crashed out of the German Cup after losing 3-2 to fourth-division club RB Leipzig.
Author: Spencer Kimball (AFP, Reuters)
Editor: Nicole Goebel