Bayern Munich suffered a shock 2-1 defeat at third-tier outfit Saarbrucken as the Bundesliga champions crashed out in the second round of the DFB-Pokal.
Thomas Tuchel’s men led through Thomas Muller’s 16th-minute effort, only to end up red-faced as their opponents pulled off a remarkable turnaround.
Patrick Sontheimer equalised in first-half stoppage time, and after Bayern failed to take a number of second-half opportunities, Marcel Gaus struck in added time to complete the giant-killing.
It made for some contrast to Bayern’s previous outing, the 8-0 demolition of Darmstadt at the Allianz Arena four days earlier in the Bundesliga.
Tuchel made five changes to his starting XI from that game, with top-scorer Harry Kane among those dropping to the bench.
It appeared business as usual for the visitors when two of those brought into the side combined to give them the lead just past the quarter-hour mark, Muller striking past Tim Schreiber having been teed up by Frans Kratzig.
But rather than the floodgates opening for Bayern – who were forced to take off Matthijs De Ligt due to an apparent knee injury in the 24th minute, with Konrad Laimer coming on – it was Saarbrucken showing the greater threat for the remainder of the first half.
Kasim Rabihic was to the fore, unable to make the most of a couple of chances with Manuel Neuer gathering the ball each time, before the home side equalised just prior to the interval, Kratzig losing possession and the ball coming to Lukas Boeder, whose pass set up a simple finish for Sontheimer.
After Leroy Sane twice saw efforts saved by Schreiber following the resumption, Tuchel opted to include him in a treble substitution on the hour that saw Kingsley Coman, Jamal Musiala and Serge Gnabry enter the fray.
All three were soon trying their luck – a curling Musiala shot five minutes later was dealt with by Schreiber, who subsequently denied Gnabry, and the goalkeeper then did well to tip Coman’s strike over the bar.
Muller headed off-target and Coman saw another attempt parried by Schreiber as Bayern’s frustration continued.
Having survived that pressure, Saarbrucken then secured a famous victory by scoring their second in the sixth minute of added time, substitute Tim Civeja producing a cut-back and Gaus firing in to leave the illustrious opposition stunned.
Al-Nassr 3-1 Al-Khaleej: Ronaldo nets twice and passes up penalty in cup semi-final
Cristiano Ronaldo returned to the scoresheet with two goals as Al-Nassr beat Al-Khaleej 3-1 to reach the final of the King Cup of Champions on Wednesday.
Ronaldo scored either side of half-time as Al-Nassr teed up a final clash with Saudi Pro League leaders Al-Hilal, who beat Al-Ittihad 2-1 in the other semi-final on Tuesday.
The former Real Madrid and Manchester United star took advantage of an error from opposing goalkeeper Ibrahim Sehic to open the scoring 17 minutes in, then tapped home at the second attempt to make it a double shortly before the hour mark.
That goal could have made it a hat-trick for the Portugal star, but he passed up the chance to take a first-half penalty after Ivo Rodrigues handled in the area, Sadio Mane instead stepping up to blast his kick into the top corner.
Fawaz Al Terais was on target late on for Al-Khaleej, but that proved a mere consolation in a one-sided affair which saw Al-Nassr rack up 21 shots and 3.78 expected goals (xG), with their opponents managing just nine shots totalling 1.37 xG.
Data Debrief: Ronaldo's mini drought over
Ronaldo was frustrated against Al-Khaleej in the Saudi Pro League on Saturday, but he was back on song against the same opponents on Wednesday to end his mini drought of two games.
While Ronaldo's 43 touches were the fewest of any outfielder to start for Al-Nassr, he managed seven shots, five shots from inside the area and four dribbles – all game-high figures.
Al Ittihad 1-2 Al Hilal: Holders into King's Cup final
Al Hilal overcame Sergej Milinkovic-Savic's red card as Saud Abdulhamid's late goal sealed a 2-1 victory over Al Ittihad in the King's Cup semi-finals.
Without Karim Benzema, Al Ittihad ultimately lacked the firepower to make their numerical advantage count in Tuesday's clash.
Former Lazio midfielder, who joined Al Hilal as part of their spending spree last year, received a straight red card in the 42nd minute.
Al Ittihad's Abderrazzaq Hamed-Allah cancelled out Micheal's opener, but Abdulhamid popped up with the winner in the 81st minute.
Al Hilal are 10-time King's Cup winners, having won their 10th title last season.
The Saudi Pro League leaders, who are still without the injured Neymar, will now face either Al Khaleej or Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr in the final at the end of May.
Data Debrief: Malcom in the middle
Al Hilal might be missing their star Brazilian Neymar, but his compatriot Malcom is delivering when it comes to playmaking.
The former Zenit attacker set up both of Al Hilal's goals, creating three chances in total and registering a pass accuracy of 92.6 per cent, better than any of his team-mates.
Former Spain boss Del Bosque to oversee RFEF
Former Spain boss Vicente del Bosque will oversee a new committee supervising the RFEF.
Spain, which is due to be one of six host countries for the 2030 World Cup, announced the creation of a special committee until the federation holds elections to replace Luis Rubiales.
That is despite Pedro Rocha having this week been appointed as Rubiales' replacement, though he himself is under investigation amid a corruption probe.
Rubiales was dismissed following his unsolicited kiss on Jenni Hermoso during the Women's World Cup trophy ceremony in 2023.
The federation's former president was then arrested in early April as part of a corruption investigation.
Del Bosque led Spain to three consecutive trophies, winning the European Championships in 2008 and 2012, while also leading the team to their first World Cup success in 2010.
Prior to his time with the national team, he also won two Champions Leagues and two LaLiga titles while in charge of Real Madrid, where he made over 400 appearances as a player.
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