German third-tier side Erzgebirge Aue have caused a shock in the second round of the DFB-Pokal by claiming a 1-0 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt.
The early signs were worrying for the hosts as Makoto Hasebe and Alexander Meier linked up on a regular basis, with the latter somehow clearing the crossbar after finding space in the box.
Despite looking vulnerable at the back, Erzgebirge were positive in possession and threatened to take the lead when Simon Skarlatidis unleashed a curling effort to test Lukas Hradecky from the edge of the box.
It was the home side who finished the first half the stronger of the two teams, but they almost fell behind just after the break when Luca Walschmidt's low strike was pushed clear by Martin Mannel.
However, Erzgebirge Aue continued to impress on the counter-attack and they broke the deadlock with 16 minutes of normal time remaining as Skarlatidis combined with Max Wegner, who calmly slotted his effort into the bottom corner.
A spell on the back foot followed in the closing stages, but the hosts held on to clinch a memorable win.
Callum Mulvihill
