tAfter the elimination from the DFB Cup, goalkeeper Tim Schreiber was unable to explain his crucial mistake. In the 53rd minute, the 21-year-old slipped Tuesday night in the DFB Cup semi-finals A harmless header from Marlon Ritter between the legs. This is how 1. FC Kaiserslautern took the lead, eventually winning 2-0 1. FC Saarbrücken They won and reached the final of the DFB Cup.
“These are the kind of balls you think ten out of ten about in training. You hold everyone up,” Schreiber said. ARD. “You can't explain that in retrospect. For a moment you want to sink into the ground, but then you have to keep going.” In the 75th minute, Almamy Touré also headed past the Saarbrücken goalkeeper.
“We fought very hard”
“I feel very sorry for the team. The boys fought a lot, even after 0-1,” said Schreiber. The third division club had a lot to thank the goalkeeper in their miraculous run through the DFB Cup with victories against Bayern Munich, Eintracht Frankfurt and Borussia Mönchengladbach.
“It was a fairy tale,” said Schreiber, on loan at Saarbrücken from Bundesliga side RB Leipzig until the end of this season, of the sensational cup appearances. FCK coach Friedhelm Funkel He expressed his sympathy for the opposing goalkeeper. “Of course, it was luck that the ball escaped him. These are the stories that football writes after having performed so well in the cup,” said Funkel.
As tears flowed from the defeated Saarbrücken, the old coach hugged his assistants tightly and the players let themselves go. 1. FC Kaiserslautern Celebrated by fans in the red pyrona fog.
“It hurts a lot now because it doesn't have to be like this,” he also said. Saarbrücken Coach Rüdiger Ziehl on ARD. Looking back, you'll also realize what a journey it was. “We can be proud of it.” “Today we had the luck we needed,” explained Funkel: “But the team was patient.” As a reward, the 70-year-old gave the players permission to celebrate for a few hours. .
Reaching the final brings millions of additional income to the inhabitants of the Palatinate. The last rival of the “Red Devils” will be this Wednesday (8:45 p.m. in FAZ live ticker for the DFB Cup, on ZDF and Sky) between Bundesliga leader Bayer Leverkusen and second division club Fortuna Düsseldorf. The final will take place on May 25 in Berlin. With a victory there, Funkel's team could even secure their participation in the Europa League. It would be FCK's third cup after 1990 and 1996.
Saarbrücken, for its part, failed to qualify for the final, as it is the fourth third division club in the almost one hundred year history of the competition. So far, only fans of Hertha BSC (1993), Energie Cottbus (1997) and 1. FC Union Berlin (2001) have achieved this feat.