Frankfurt and 10-Man Leipzig Secure Vital DFB-Pokal Victories

Eintracht Frankfurt and RB Leipzig booked their spots in the DFB-Pokal round of 16 following contrasting second-round victories on Wednesday night. Frankfurt relied on second-half clinical finishing to secure a 3-1 away win over Hamburger SV, while Leipzig overcame a first-half red card to execute a late 2-1 turnaround against third-tier Rot-Weiss Essen.

At Hamburg's Volksparkstadion, Frankfurt broke open a scoreless deadlock through captain Robin Koch in the 56th minute. As detailed in match reporting by Sueddeutsche.de, Jonathan Burkardt doubled the advantage in the 71st minute during his final action on the pitch. His immediate replacement, Younes Ebnoutalib, struck Frankfurt's third just four minutes later in the 75th minute. Hamburger SV pulled a consolation goal back through Terem Moffi in the 79th minute, but could not mount a late comeback. Compounding Hamburg's disappointment, central defender Sebastiaan Bornauw was forced off at halftime due to injury, leaving the club short-handed before they face Frankfurt again in Bundesliga league play this Sunday.

Simultaneously, RB Leipzig avoided an upset at Stadion an der Hafenstraße after falling behind early to Rot-Weiss Essen. Lucas Brumme handed the third-tier hosts an advantage in the 9th minute. Leipzig's assignment worsened when midfielder Nicolas Seiwald received a second yellow card in the 44th minute, leaving the Bundesliga side to contest the entire second half with ten men. Despite recent lopsided away defeats against Bayern Munich (1-6) and Atletico Madrid (1-4), Leipzig rallied late behind an individual performance from Christoph Baumgartner. The Austrian international leveled in the 78th minute and sealed the 2-1 victory in the 82nd minute, sending Leipzig through to the next stage.

| Hamburger SV vs. Eintracht Frankfurt | 1–3 | HSV: Moffi (79')

SGE: Koch (56'), Burkardt (71'), Ebnoutalib (75') | Koch opening goal (56') and quick bench impact by Ebnoutalib (75') |

| Rot-Weiss Essen vs. RB Leipzig | 1–2 | RWE: Brumme (9')

RBL: Baumgartner (78', 82') | Baumgartner late brace despite Seiwald's red card (44') |

The results secure round-of-16 progression for two of Germany's leading sides under difficult cup conditions. Frankfurt continues its strong domestic momentum, while Leipzig's resilience provides relief following a challenging run of road performances.