As every year, the Bundesliga clubs face an early exit against a lower-class club in the first round of the DFB Cup. These are the most dangerous pitfalls.
The main thing is to continue – that’s what the 18 Bundesliga clubs are hoping for in the first round of the DFB Cup, which will be held a week before the start of the league.
But experience shows that it is very rare for all the favorites to get through. The risk of tripping is particularly high at six locations.
Saturday, 3:30 p.m.: Jahn Regensburg – 1. FC Cologne
Two games, two wins and still no goal conceded: The Oberpfälzer go into the game as second division leaders against the Rhinelanders, in which striker Anthony Modeste once again wants to leave the club noisily. And last year the guests were even eliminated in front of their own audience against the second division team Hamburger SV.
SV Elversberg – Bayer Leverkusen
The early form of the Saarlanders is good, at the start of the league, fellow promoted team Rot-Weiss Essen was swept off the field 5-1.
The Werkself are not a cup team. Last year it was already over in round two (1:2 against the second division club Karlsruher SC), the only cup win is now 29 (!) years ago.
Sunday, 3:30 p.m.: 1. FC Kaiserslautern – SC Freiburg
With a win and a draw, the Palatinate have arrived well in their new league, and the home advantage on the Betzenberg could also help. The cup finalist lost national player Nico Schlotterbeck to Borussia Dortmund, before this year’s final qualification, the Breisgauer had never made it past the quarter-finals for seven years.
Sunday, 6 p.m.: Eintracht Braunschweig – Hertha BSC
The Lower Saxony know how it’s done: Exactly two years ago, they knocked out the Berliners in the first round – with a spectacular 5: 4. The Hertha coach at the time, Bruno Labbadia, was put on leave four months later and has been without a job ever since.
Monday, 6 p.m.: Energie Cottbus – Werder Bremen
Nobody makes a fool of themselves as often as the Hanseatic League. Five times in the past eleven years, the first round was also the last. There were defeats at 1. FC Heidenheim, at Preußen Münster, at 1. FC Saarbrücken, at Sportfreunde Lotte and at VfL Osnabrück.
Monday, 8:45 p.m.: 1. FC Magdeburg – Eintracht Frankfurt
First Bayern Munich, then Real Madrid, but before that 1. FC Magdeburg: How seriously does the Europa League winner take the cup opener with the newly promoted second division?
Last year, the Hessians made themselves look ridiculous with a 2-0 defeat in the first round at third division club SV Waldhof Mannheim.