Göppingen beat Koburg 2000 36 to 26 in the German Cup on Wednesday evening. The visitors took control early and never looked back, while the hosts found themselves chasing shadows by half-time. It was a straightforward evening for Göppingen, though not one Koburg will want to remember.
By then the pattern was already clear. Göppingen moved the ball with purpose and Koburg's defence kept switching off at set pieces. The hosts managed only 26 goals from their attacks, while Göppingen found the net 36 times. They were dominant in the air from set plays, something Koburg simply couldn't match.
Koburg's recent form hasn't helped, to be fair. They'd drawn with Nordhorn-Lingen on the 18th, beaten Ferndorf narrowly on the 12th, but then lost to Hagen and Potsdam. Against Göppingen they never got out of second gear. The visitors picked up two bookings in five minutes and never recovered.
We'd called this one before kick-off, honestly. Göppingen win was our pick at 95 percent confidence, and we weren't wrong. They'd won three of their last five, including victories over Rhein-Neckar Löwen and Hamburg, while Koburg had slipped to two losses in their past five. The gap between them showed up on the scoreboard.
Göppingen now move forward in the cup. Koburg are left to pick up the pieces after a performance that cost them dearly. The result brings them together early in the competition, but only one side advances.
