HSV survive Pokal quarter-final scare to win 3-2 on penalties
After a 2-2 draw, Fernandes was the hero for the hosts saving three penalties in the decisive shoot-out.
One of the DfB Pokal quarter final clashes tonight pitted fourth place Hamburg against ninth place Karlsruhe in the 2.Bundesliga this evening, and it was the side from the Hanseatic City that progressed into the last four.
As most cup games go, both sides took a lively approach to the opening proceedings. The home side had the bulk of the shots at goal as they were roared on by an almost full capacity Volksparkstadion. Karlsruhe coped well under pressure to give them their due credit, and sole striker Hofmann had the first shot on target, but the headed effort fell into the grateful arms of Fernandes.
Fernandes probably didn’t expect to be so central to HSV’s fortunes early on. The goalkeeper was drawn into the action on two occasions between the 20th and 35th minutes. Vuskovic’s freekick fell kindly for Karlsruhe who broke and found Choi who thundered an effort off the Hamburg keeper’s shoulder, while Hofmann tested his gloves with a low driven effort. Glatzel went close for the hosts with his head but to no avail.
Amazingly, it was Karlsruhe who made it 0-1 just before the break. A Gyamerah foul presented a freekick for the visitors. Left-back Heise stepped up and curled his effort around the wall to ripple the net and delight the travelling support.
Karlsruhe furthered their likelihood of reaching the semi-finals 6 minutes after the restart when they made it 0-2. Wanitzek’s shot was parried straight into the path of Hofmann who had been causing trouble all night. The big target man reacted quickly to turn the ball past Fernandes on the rebound. Hamburg refused to lie down however, and less than 2 minutes later pulled it back to 1-2. Chakvetadze’s cross was cushioned over Gersbeck with a deft flick from Glatzel’s head to give his side a fighting chance with plenty of time left on the clock.
Glatzel thought he had won a penalty after a coming together in the box from a cross. After a lengthy VAR deliberation, referee Zwayer awarded a spot kick and sent Kobald to the dressing rooms when he received his second yellow card of the night. Kittel stepped up but found his penalty miraculously saved by Gersbeck who was mobbed by his overjoyed teammates.
Just as Karlsruhe saw it out until injury time a low cross from Jatta, who had been difficult to mark all evening, fed Glatzel who broke free from his marker and slotted the ball under Gersbeck’s leg for 2-2. Heartbreak for the underdogs, but ecstasy filled the Volksparkstadion as extra time seemed imminent.
Even with a man less, KSC refused to back down and battled gallantly for the entirety of extra time. Both teams could sense the game was there for the taking, but in the end neither team could find a winner and penalties would settle the tie.
Gersbeck, who had kept his side in the game on multiple occasions tonight saved HSV’s first penalty from Schonlau. Fernandes also did his part for Der Dino, saving KSC’s third and fourth penalties from Gordon and Wanitzek. In the end the HSV shot stopper came out on top, saving KSC’s fifth and final penalty resulting in a 3-2 shoot-out win to progress to the semi-finals (2-2 after 120 mins).