Both Hamburger SV and VfL Bochum navigated challenging first-round fixtures in the DFB-Pokal, narrowly avoiding upset defeats against lower-league opposition. HSV secured a 2-1 extra-time victory over FK Pirmasens, while Bochum defeated BFC Dynamo 3-1, also requiring additional time to prevail.
The match in Pirmasens saw the hosts, captained by Yannick Grieß, take an early lead, holding the Bundesliga side to a tense encounter. It wasn’t until stoppage time that Hamburg managed to equalize through a header from Guilherme Ramos, forcing the game into extra time. Ransford Königsdörffer ultimately sealed the win for HSV with a further goal.
In Berlin, the match also headed to extra time after Bochum’s Noah Loosli levelled the score late in regular play, cancelling out an earlier goal by BFC Dynamo’s Jan Shcherbakovski. Bochum eventually triumphed 3-1 in extra time, benefiting from a situation that saw them play with a two-man advantage. Samuel Bamba and Matus Bero added crucial goals to secure the victory.
Both matches were characterized by determined performances from the underdog fourth and fifth-tier opponents, who came close to causing significant upsets. Hamburg and Bochum demonstrated periods of struggling to break down their resilient opponents and will likely need to improve their performance levels as the season progresses.
