FCA march into round two of the DFB-Pokal

FC Augsburg will play in the second round of the DFB-Pokal after overcoming Regionalliga challengers TSV Steinbach 2-1 in lively encounter in Hessen. Augsburg took the lead through Marco Richter after a quarter of an hour but were pegged back just before the hour by Nico Herzig’s header. André Hahn, who returned to FCA this summer, nodded home the winner to secure a 2-1 victory for Augsburg. FCA head coach Manuel Baum made three changes following last week’s 1-0 friendly defeat at the hands of Athletic Bilbao. The first competitive game of the season saw Andreas Luthe get the number one jersey over Fabian Giefer. Hahn played right midfield instead of Fredrik Jensen and Jonathan Schmid got the nod at right back over Raphael Framberger. Right from kick off Augsburg were on top. After going close several times, FCA finally took the lead when Richter gained possession on the edge of the box and turned the ball into the bottom left corner of the net. The chances kept coming for Augsburg in the first half as Steinbach chose to sit back and offered little going forward. The visitors couldn’t add to their lead and went in just 1-0 up at the break. The second half saw a newly invigorated Schweinfurt team take the initiative. The hosts went close several times before their hard work eventually paid off and Herzig headed in the equalizer from a corner. FCA stayed calm and found an answer ten minutes later when Hahn headed into the bottom left corner to restore the lead. The rest of the game saw a lively back and forth encounter, and goalkeeper Luthe had to be alert to avoid any embarrassment for the Bundesliga side as he saved two close chances from the brave Regionalliga side. Despite five minutes of stoppage time Augsburg managed to see out the win, ensuring a safe passage into the second round of the DFB-Pokal.