Leipzig see off Wolfsburg to reach DFB-Pokal semis
Berlin, March 3, 2021 (AFP) - Yussuf Poulsen and Hwang Hee-chan netted second-half goals as RB Leipzig beat Wolfsburg 2-0 in Wednesday's German Cup quarter-final in a tense battle between the in-form Bundesliga sides.
After Poulsen opened the scoring, South Korea striker Hwang came off the bench to hit a late second goal and seal a semi-final berth alongside Borussia Dortmund and second-tier Holstein Kiel.
The other quarter-final tie was postponed Tuesday as second-tier club Jahn Regensburg went into quarantine after a Covid-19 outbreak before their home tie against Werder Bremen.
Hosts Leipzig, who are second in the Bundesliga, shaded visitors Wolfsburg who are one place below them in the league table.
Wolfsburg squandered a first-half penalty when Dutch striker Wout Weghorst skied his spot kick over the bar.
Leipzig had the ball in the net moments later but Justin Kluivert's effort was ruled out with Christopher Nkunku offside.
The hosts got the breakthrough when Poulsen shook off his marker and fired into the bottom corner on 63 minutes.
Hwang made sure of the victory two minutes before the whistle when he tapped home the rebound after Leipzig playmaker Emil Forsberg had a shot saved.
Earlier, Holstein Kiel, who knocked out Bayern Munich in the second round, reached the semi-finals for the first time after a 3-0 win at fourth-tier Rot-Weiss Essen.
Second-division Holstein took command with two goals in as many first-half minutes behind closed doors in Essen.
Alexander Muehling converted a penalty on 26 minutes before former Bremen midfielder Fin Bartels put in a long header to the far post two minutes later where Janni-Luca Serra tapped the ball home.
On 90 minutes, Bartels' replacement Joshua Mees added Kiel's third goal when his shot was deflected into the Essen net.