Sonnenhof Grossaspach beat Fortuna Köln 1-0 in the opening round of the 3. Liga regular season on Saturday. The hosts took a half-time lead through L. Maier, who struck in the 33rd minute, and held on despite relentless pressure from the visitors. It was a match decided by a single moment of quality, and nothing more.
Fortuna started brightly enough, with N. Thier picking up a booking in the 15th minute after a mistimed challenge. Aidonis went in the book for them soon after, and then Celiktas added a third yellow before the break. By then the visitors had already begun to look impatient, and things came to a head when Maier found space to slot home.
Geerkens came on for Fortuna at half-time, and the visitors threw men forward. They kept knocking on the door, but Grossaspach defended well and punished them from a corner when they could. Thier was replaced in the 60th minute, and Majetic, Pollex, and Rossmann followed for the hosts in quick succession.
Aigbekaen picked up a booking in the 71st minute, and by then the game had settled into a rhythm neither side could break. Strauch and Fass came on late on, but there was no breakthrough. Fortuna had shot themselves in the foot with their approach, and it showed on the scoreboard.
Both sides registered 85 attacks and five corners apiece, but the difference lay in efficiency. Grossaspach landed four shots on target from nine attempts, while Fortuna managed just one from three. That is the sort of thing that decides matches at this level, and here it did.
Grossaspach move up to 10th with six points from four games, while Köln drop to 12th on five. It was not a result that changed much in the table, but it extended the hosts' unbeaten run and ended a streak for the visitors. Sometimes one goal is enough.