Mainz beats Barça thanks to Babatz
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RB Leipzig has reached the round of 16 of the UEFA Youth League for the first time. The Saxons won the playoffs at FC Midtjylland on Tuesday afternoon with 5:3 (0:1; 1:1) after penalties. Mikel Gogorza (13th minute) gave the Danes an early lead, from the 62nd minute onwards, after a yellow-red card against Tim Köhler, the Leipzig team fought with ten men for the equalizer, which was scored in the last minute by Jonathan Norbye (90th + 5th minute). ) fell. In the penalty shootout that followed, all four Leipzig players held their nerve, while Midtjylland missed twice.
Surprisingly, Croatian talent Din Klapija also made his first appearance at RB, although his transfer from Leipzig has not yet been officially announced. For the 17-year-old, who signed a contract until 2026, RB reportedly transferred a transfer fee of 3 million euros to NK Kustosija Zagreb. Klapija was actually supposed to stay in Croatia until the end of the season. The striker came on as a substitute in the 75th minute.
Defending champion Alkmaar: All Youth League winners since 2013/14
In addition to Leipzig, Mainz 05 will also be fighting for a ticket to the next round against FC Barcelona on Tuesday evening (6 p.m.), while BVB will also play at MSK Zilina (4:30 p.m.) and FC Bayern will play at FC Basel (6 p.m.) on Wednesday. at. In the round of 16, the winners will face a group winner from the Champions League path. The final will take place on April 22nd at the Stade de Genève in Lancy.
Update 8:15 p.m.: The juniors of 1. FSV Mainz 05 also prevailed in the penalty shootout and are in the round of 16. Against the favored Barcelona, led by U17 world champion Noah Darvich, the score was 2-2 after 90 minutes, and after penalties the Rheinhessen ultimately won 8-7. Darvich equalized Mainz’s lead through Daniel Gleiber (25′) in the 34th minute, Dani Rodríguez gave the Catalans the lead at the start of the second half (48′). Philipp Schulz again managed to equalize in the 75th minute. Then goalkeeper Louis Babatz, son of FSV legend Christof Babatz, became a hero: the 18-year-old made a save against Marc Bernal and Pau Prim and took the game to the next round.
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