Riots in the cup duel against RB
Freiburg’s footballers prevent fans from storming the pitch
05/02/2023, 11:45 p.m
SC Freiburg started the game far too late in the semi-finals of the DFB Cup. The duel was already decided in favor of RB Leipzig at the break. Emotions ran high in the stands in the second half, and some fans got inside the stadium.
RB Leipzig has again reached the final of the DFB Cup with spectacular attacking football. Led by the outstanding playmaker Dani Olmo, the defending champions celebrated a 5-1 (4-0) victory in the semi-finals at SC Freiburg. The second half was overshadowed by incidents in the stands. First, the Leipzig substitutes were thrown at with cups and coins while warming up, then some SC fans managed to jump into the interior. But they could be pushed back by folders and several players.
Leipzig striker André Silva had previously been hit in the head by an object. He was apparently unharmed. The emotions were not only boiled up because of the clear deficit. A few minutes earlier there had been a mighty crash in the guests’ penalty area. Freiburg’s Lukas Kübler missed the ball in front of the goal. He still went all out against Orban and hit the defender as well as the ball. Nevertheless, the action excited RB goalkeeper Janis Blaswich so much that a pack formed.
After the game, representatives of both clubs tried to quickly capture the ugly scenes in the stands and indoors. They will meet again in the Bundesliga on Saturday (3.30 p.m.). Michael Gregoritsch, the SC striker, said on ZDF: “I don’t know what the trigger was. It doesn’t do anyone any good. We are responsible for them going back. It shouldn’t be, but it was quickly cleared up.” RB coach Marco Rose said: “I didn’t even notice it at first, it was a cup atmosphere. You have it relatively often that there are always two or three idiots in a stadium with a lot of great fans.”
Also bitter for Leipzig: defender Josko Gvardiol saw the red card in the 58th minute after video evidence because of an emergency brake and thus missed the final in Berlin. He had held Roland Sallai just outside the penalty area and was the last man in the guests from Saxony. Their opponent in the Olympic Stadium on June 3rd is either Eintracht Frankfurt or VfB Stuttgart. Both teams meet in the second semi-final (Wednesday, 8.45 p.m. live on ARD and in the live ticker on ntv.de) on top of each other.