The Lilies win in Köln

The opening minutes of the Lilies‘ away game at 1. FC Köln were quite even overall, the home side saw most of the ball but weren’t able to fashion anything of note to trouble Marcel Schuhen. It was only after 18 minutes that the spectators saw the first dangerous finish: Alidou took possession of the ball on the edge of the penalty area and saw his effort strike the outside of the post and rebound to safety.

The Lilies struggled to find a foothold in the attacking third of the pitch and Effzeh were able to assert a bit of control. However, ten minutes before half-time, Darmstadt had opportunities to score: first a shot from Matthias Bader was just blocked, then Schwäbe directed Tim Skarke’s deflected follow-up shot to a corner. Despite four minutes of additional time at the end of the half, neither side were able to find a goal as they headed to the changing rooms.

Barely 15 seconds into the second half, Darmstadt registered their first effort. The ball came to Oscar Vilhelmsson in the area and he got an effort away but it was straight at Schade. The Lilies took the lead on 57 minutes following a corner. Tobias Kempe whipped in a corner and the ball dropped for Christoph Klarer and he swept the ball home, going through the legs of Schwabe before hitting the back of the net.

Mathias Honsak who had came on and won the first in a series of corners that led to the opening goal, had an opportunity to double the lead on 63 minutes. Tim Skarke whipped in a dangerous cross to the back post for an unmarked Honsak but his header drifted wide of the far post.

The Köln team tried a lot in the period that followed, but offered little in the way of decisive moments with Schuhen remaining untested in the goal. As the game ticked into the final minute, Holtmann showed his strength to win possession and got clear on ball but he saw his shot parried by Schwabe. The loose ball was pounced on by Vilhelmsson who fired home to seal the victory.