Fortuna Düsseldorf has gained some breathing room in the fight to stay in the second division. Fortuna celebrated a home win over SC Paderborn.
Fortuna Düsseldorf won 2-1 (0-1) in the sold-out arena on Sunday afternoon. 51,500 fans who had free entry as part of the “Fortuna for All” campaign saw the duel.
The teams went into the game on matchday 20 with different emotional states: Fortuna had recently suffered a 1-2 defeat in Hanover, which meant Fortuna coach Markus beginning came under even more pressure. The promotion candidate SC Paderborn traveled confidently to the state capital after winning the Westphalia duel against Münster the previous week; the jump to the top of the table was possible after Schalke’s defeat the day before.
Okpala (l.) scores for Paderborn in Düsseldorf
And the East Westphalians got into the game well in Düsseldorf, scoring the lead in the second minute of the game: Kennedy Okpala came free after a corner kick from the left side – his low shot hit the bottom right of the Fortuna goal. The execution of the corner was a “rehearsed variant,” as the Paderborn goalscorer later explained on the ARD microphone. For the 21-year-old Okpala it was the first second division goal of his career.
Table 16. But Düsseldorf was not shocked by the early goal. As a result, Fortuna kept the game even. Düsseldorf’s Shinta Appelkamp failed with a long-range shot past Paderborn keeper Dennis Seimen (13th).
Yellow card for Paderborn coach Ketteman
In injury time of the first half, Paderborn’s coach Ralf Kettemann was shown a yellow card for complaining, his fourth of the current season. This means that the 39-year-old is not allowed to look after his team on the sidelines on the next match day. The warning was “harsh” but justifiable, said Kettemann after the game: “There are rules that I didn’t follow.”
Kettemann replaced Steffen Tigges, the double goalscorer from the previous week, for the second half. However, in the early stages of the second half, the hosts continued to be the more active team, although they did not pose a major goal threat in the first quarter of an hour after the restart.
Appelkamp scores with a deflected shot
In the 63rd minute, Düsseldorf managed to equalize after a counterattack: Paderborn had advanced far, and a pass from Düsseldorf’s Florent Muslija opened up a lot of space for Appelkamp in midfield. The German-Japanese shot at the visitors’ goal from more than 20 meters – the 101 kilometer per hour shot was deflected and landed in the net. “The 1-1 came at a good time,” said Appelkamp on the ARD microphone after the game. “In the second half it was a game to one goal.”
Paderborn’s Hansen sees yellow-red
After the equalizer, Düsseldorf continued to play forward. In the 72nd minute, the Paderborn team suffered another setback: SCP defender Mattes Hansen was shown a yellow-red card for repeated foul play, so the guests had to continue playing with ten men.
Düsseldorf’s pressure continued to increase against a decimated East Westphalia: In the 75th minute, Satoshi Tanaka shot from 17 meters – his shot was powerful, but too central, so that keeper Seimen was able to parry.
Fortuna turns the game around with Itten’s goal
A little later, the home team turned the game in their favor: Tanaka passed into the penalty area from half left, and after taking the ball nicely, Fortuna striker Cedric Itten hit the Paderborn goal from around twelve meters (83′). The Düsseldorf players enthusiastically celebrated the opening goal in front of the Fortuna fans.
In the final phase, Paderborn could no longer threaten Fortuna. The Düsseldorf team were finally able to celebrate a 2-1 win against the promotion candidate.
Düsseldorf is now 13th in the table.
With their third home win in a row, the red-whites climbed to 13th place in the table, three points ahead of 16th place. He’s not interested in the standings right now, Fortuna coach said early after the game. “If you win a game, you’re not out of the bottom. And if you lose a game, you’re not relegated,” Beginn told ARD. “It’s going to drag on. You can see how tight it is.” His Fortuna now has to score points away from home in order to get out of the bottom of the table.
The SCP missed the jump to the top and is now in fourth place in the table. The gap to the promotion zone is two points. “After the early 1-0 we missed taking control of the game,” complained Paderborn coach Kettemann after the final whistle.
Fortuna has to go to KSC, Paderborn welcomes Nuremberg
The Paderborn team continues next Saturday (February 7th, 2026) in the 2nd Bundesliga with a home game against 1. FC Nürnberg, kick-off is at 1 p.m. One day later, Fortuna Düsseldorf visits Karlsruher SC, with the game starting at 1:30 p.m.
Our sources:
- Second division game Fortuna Düsseldorf against SC Paderborn on February 1st, 2026 (live broadcast on Sky)
