Ten-man Borussia Monchengladbach hold on to beat Karlsruher SC 2-0 and reach the DFB-Pokal round of 16
Robin Hack and substitute Lukas Ullrich scored either side of a 39th-minute red card, and Gladbach's bottom-of-the-table Bundesliga side still saw out the full half hour short-handed to beat second-division Karlsruhe 2-0.
Borussia Monchengladbach needed a lift from somewhere, and a cup tie against second-division Karlsruher SC looked like the kindest possible place to find one. It still took a half hour of defending with ten men to get there, but Gladbach beat Karlsruhe 2-0 at the Stadion im Borussia-Park to reach the DFB-Pokal round of 16.
Robin Hack put them ahead inside seven minutes, finishing a move Joe Scally had set up down the right. Twelve minutes later, Gladbach were down to ten men: Philipp Sander was sent off for a last-man foul on Shio Fukuda, leaving his side to protect a one-goal lead for the rest of the half and all of the second.
They did more than protect it. Lukas Ullrich, sent on for Hugo Bolin at the break, needed four minutes to make it 2-0 — a first-time finish off a quick one-two with Hack on the counter. From there Karlsruhe had the ball without ever really threatening Daniel Batz's goal, and Gladbach saw out the final half hour a man light without alarm.
Match facts
- 7' — Robin Hack (Monchengladbach)
- 39' — Philipp Sander (Monchengladbach) sent off
- 49' — Lukas Ullrich (Monchengladbach)
| Stat | Monchengladbach | Karlsruher SC |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 36% | 64% |
| Shots on target | 3 | 4 |
| Pass accuracy | 73% | 85% |
| Corners | 1 | 6 |
| Fouls committed | 7 | 11 |
| Offsides | 0 | 1 |
| Red cards | 1 | 0 |
A result that fits a wider turn
Context matters here. Monchengladbach went into this tie on the back of six straight league defeats, sitting bottom of the Bundesliga table, before snapping the run with a 3-2 win away at VfB Stuttgart four days earlier. Beating a Bundesliga 2 side in the cup is not the same test as the league, but it is still a second win in less than a week for a squad that had forgotten what one felt like — and this one came with ten men for more than half the match, which says something about the response once Sander walked.
What's next
Gladbach move into the DFB-Pokal round of 16, scheduled for 1-2 December 2026. The draw for that round had not been made at the time of writing, so their next cup opponent is still unknown. Karlsruhe, who were without a shot on target of real note after the opening exchanges, are out of the competition and return their full attention to the Bundesliga 2 table.
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