Cologne is slowly recovering after a weak start to the season in the 2nd league. In the duel between the long-standing first division clubs, FC won – and thus climbed up the table.
After the strong 3-0 win in the DFB Cup against Bundesliga club Holstein Kiel, 1. FC Köln has also found its way back to success in the 2nd Bundesliga. In the top game in front of 68,765 spectators at Hertha BSC, the Rhinelanders narrowly but deservedly won 1-0 (1-0).
Tim Lemperle scored the goal of the day in the 31st minute. Thanks to the victory in the Berlin Olympic Stadium, the Cologne team climbed to tenth place in the table. The Hertha team, who were also victorious in the cup against a first division team during the week (2-1 against Heidenheim), missed out on a promotion place and remained sixth.
“This is something extremely special,” said goal scorer Lemperle happily at the Sky microphone after the game and particularly praised the support of the around 15,000 Cologne fans who traveled with him: “They completely supported us today,” said the 22-year-old.
Both teams relied on the starting lineups that had brought them victory in the cup. Cologne started again with a three-man chain and Marvin Schwäbe in goal, who had played his first competitive game of the season against Kiel.
While the backdrop for the duel between the two former German champions was top-flight-ready, the two teams on the field didn’t have a real chance to score in the first half hour. Cologne’s Dominique Heintz then found the gap in Hertha’s defense with a ball from her own half. His teammate Lemperle ran alone towards Berlin goalkeeper Tjark Ernst and scored his fifth league goal to give the “Billy Billy Goats” a deserved lead.
A few minutes after the restart, Hertha had its best chance to date. After a corner, Derry Scherhant shot at a teammate (46′). Shortly afterwards, captain Toni Leistner had to be replaced with an injury (52′).
The Capitals got better and had a few opportunities. On the other hand, Dejan Ljubičić missed a great chance to make it 2-0 (60th). Berlin kept trying, but had no luck and lost for the first time in over a month.
