Bayern Munich faced yet another premature exit from the German Cup following their 2-1 loss to third-division Saarbruecken, marking their third second-round elimination in the last four years. The unexpected defeat came with a dramatic last-minute goal by Marcel Gaus, securing a historic win for the home side.
The match initially seemed in favor of Bayern when veteran Thomas Mueller opened the scoring early on. However, the home team managed to equalize through Patrick Sontheimer just before the halftime break. With the score tied at 1-1 and extra time on the horizon, Gaus’s late goal in the sixth minute of injury time sealed the stunning triumph for Saarbruecken.
The Cup disappointment was exacerbated by a potentially serious knee injury to central defender Matthijs de Ligt, further limiting Bayern’s defensive options to only one fit center-back for the majority of the game.
Mueller’s goal had seemed to set Bayern on course for a routine victory, but the unfortunate injury to De Ligt during the early stages of the match altered the team’s dynamics and signaled a reversal in their fate.
The injury left forced midfielder Joshua Kimmich into defence and appeared to put Bayern on the back foot against a resurgent Saarbruecken.
The hosts struck next, Sontheimer tapping in a pass from Lukas Boeder after Saarbruecken pressed midfielder Frans Kraetzig into a mistake.
Bayern coach Thomas Tuchel brought on the calvary, including Kingsley Coman, Jamal Musiala and Serge Gnabry, but star striker Harry Kane stayed on the bench.
With the England captain warming up ahead of what looked like certain extra time, veteran defender Gaus popped up with a moment that will go down in Saarbruecken history.
