USMNT striker Josh Sargent scored the second goal in one of six German Cup second-round matches held Wednesday.
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Sargent’s Werder Bremen avoided an upset bid from lower league competition but Mainz, Union Berlin, and Fortuna Dusseldorf were not successful.
Hannover 96 0-3 Werder Bremen
Bremen’s 3-0 win featured a goal over 87 minutes from Sargent, while Theodor Gebre Selassie and Jean-Manuel Mbom also scored for Bremen, the latter assisted by Manchester United loanee Tahith Chong.
It’s the ninth senior goal for Sargent to go with eight assists in 58 appearances and his second goal in two German Cup games this season. He was named Man of the Match.
Sargent, still 20 until February, has started 12 of 13 league matches for Bremen, going the distance in eight while managing a goal and two assists.
He might’ve been just offside, but let’s assumed the assistant referee is correct. It’s a well-timed run and quality finish.
Mainz 2-2 (0-3 pens) Bochum
A day after a crazy penalty shootout saw Greuther Furth come back to beat Bundesliga mainstay Hoffenheim, another top-flight team was upset in penalties.
This one, was a bit weirder.
Mainz missed all three of its penalties after blowing a 2-0 lead to their 2.Bundesliga visitors, then failed to score despite playing 25 of 30 extra time minutes up a man thanks to a last-man back foul on Manuel Riemann.
Rot-Weiss Essen 3-2 Fortuna Dusseldorf
The fourth-tier hosts led 1-0 and 3-1 before holding on for a notable win over the 2.Bundesliga side.
Rouwen Hennings scored both of Fortuna’s goals, and the visitors had 69 percent possession and a 13-8 advantage in shots.
USMNT midfielder Alfredo Morales had a decent turn off the bench but the comeback fell one goal short.
Oguzhan Kefkir, Marco Kehl-Gomez, and Simon Englemann scored for the winners.
German Cup second round
Ulm 1-3 Schalke -- Tuesday
Koln 1-0 Osnabruck -- Tuesday
Augsburg 0-3 RB Leipzig -- Tuesday
Hoffenheim 2-2 (6-7 pens) Greuther Furth -- Tuesday
Eintracht Braunschweig 0-2 Borussia Dortmund -- Tuesday
Elversberg 0-5 Borussia Monchengladbach -- Tuesday
Dynamo Dresden 0-3 Darmstadt -- Tuesday
Union Berlin 2-3 Paderborn -- Tuesday
Wolfsburg 4-0 Sandhausen
Wehen Wiesbaden 0-0 (2-4 pens) Jahn Regensburg
Bayer Leverkusen v Eintracht Frankfurt -- Jan. 12
Holstein Kiel v Bayern Munich -- Jan. 13