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Hoffenheim humbled in Cup

Mark HallamAugust 18, 2012

Berlin AK 07, a fourth-tier German team, has won 4-0 against Bundesliga regulars Hoffenheim in the first round of the German Cup. Most of the top-flight teams cleared the domestic season's first (very low) hurdle.

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The players from Berliner AK 07 celebrate their shock win over Hoffenheim in the German Cup
Image: picture-alliance/dpa

It wasn't really the hard-fought cup upset fans know and love. Instead, Berlin AK tore Hoffenheim to pieces in their German Cup match on Saturday, winning 4-0. That's the kind of score-line you might have expected Hoffenheim to win by against fourth-tier opposition from the northeastern German regional league.

Coach Markus Babbel's side already trailed 3-0 at the half-time break and instead of launching a come back after the restart, Hoffenheim immediately conceded a fourth and then played out a dire defeat. The four goal margin was the largest in history for a fourth-tier team against a Bundesliga outfit.

It was hardly a happy competitive debut for new Hoffenheim - and sometimes Germany - keeper Tim Wiese.

Hoffenheim weren't the only Bundesliga side to go down to the underdogs on Saturday. Kickers Offenbach, a team in the third league, beat Greuther Fürth, who was promoted from the second league at the end of last season.

Offenbach got on the board first on a penalty awarded after a hand ball call in the box during a free kick. Striker Thomas Rathgeber took the penalty and put the home side ahead in the 26th minute.

Fürth's Edgar Prib was shown his second yellow card in the 55th minute and sent off, giving Offenbach a one man advantage. Offenbach substitute Lars Bender scored the final goal in injury time, giving Offenbach the 2-0 win.

With the exception of Hoffenheim and Greuther Fürth, the rest of the Bundesliga sides were victorious in the German Cup on Saturday.

Stuttgart players celebrate a goal
Stuttgart waltzed through their first round game, with the biggest margin of the afternoonImage: picture-alliance/dpa

Normal service resumed

Stuttgart put five unanswered goals past Falkensee-Finkenkrug, with former Hoffenheim hit-man Vedad Ibisevic opening the scoring and Austrian international Martin Harnik grabbing a pair for himself.

Wolfsburg beat Schönberg with a 5-0 scoreline as well, which included three from new Wolf Ivica Olic, who played in his first match for his new team after transferring from Bayern Munich.

Cup holders Borussia Dortmund cruised past FC Oberneuland with a 3-0 winning margin. New signing Marco Reus opened the scoring after 10 minutes, Jakub Blaszczykowski and then Ivan Perisic built on that early goal either side of the interval.

Freiburgmade hard work of Victoria Hamburg, in a game that was tied 1-1 until the 79th minute, when Sebastian Freis picked up the winning goal.

Bayer Leverkusen had no such difficulties against Carl Zeiss Jena, cruising to a 4-0 win. Leverkusen scored two early on, with Karim Bellarabi's 15th-minute strike from distance easily the goal of the afternoon. German international Andre Schürrle was credited with a pair of assists, including setting up Bellarabi, but he was unable to score himself.

Arango makes difference

Borussia Mönchengladbach, with three new signings on show, left it late against Allemania Aachen. After 70 goalless minutes, Venezuela's Juan Arango broke the deadlock.

Arango turned provider in the dying embers of the match, running out of his own area after an Aachen corner and setting Havard Nordtveit free down the middle with a delicious pass. Nordtveit, hardly known for his sharpshooting, kept his nerve in the one-on-one.

Dortmund's Marco Reus, 2nd from left, is celebrated after scoring during the German soccer cup match between FC Oberneuland and Borussia Dortmund in Bremen, Saturday, Aug. 18, 2012.
Reus didn't need long to open his competitive account with DortmundImage: dapd

Augsburg were the only Bundesliga contenders in action in Friday evening's games, they beat Wilhelmshaven 2-0.

The first round of the German Cup runs through Monday evening, with last year's defeated finalists Bayern Munich one of the last sides to take to the pitch, against Jahn Regensburg.