1. FC Köln has managed to maintain itself in the Bundesliga on Saturday. In the return of the final of the play-offs, coach Friedhelm Funkel’s team was too strong for Holstein Kiel with 1-5. Last season’s number three in the 2. Bundesliga was still 0-1 too strong for Köln in the first game, which more than compensated for the slip. Play next season die Geißböcke for the third year in a row at the highest level in Germany.
The score in the crazy game was already opened in the third minute of play. After a throw-in, Ondrej Duda gained possession of the ball on the left side of the field, then delivered a tailor-made cross to Jonas Hector. The defensive midfielder extended the cross with his head and saw the ball invade the far post: 0-1. Within sixty seconds, Holstein Kiel came up with the answer. Goalkeeper Timo Horn initially saved a shot from distance, but from the rebound Jae-Sung Lee nodded in the 1-1.
Then Köln tightened the thumbscrews further and the club was in an excellent starting position within ten minutes. In the sixth minute, Sebastian Andersson scored the 1-2 with a hard header, and seven minutes later, again with his head, put the 1-3 on the scoreboard. Florian Kainz provided the assist with both goals. On the stroke of half time, Rafael Czichos even made it 1-4 on a pass from Hector. With that, Holstein Kiel seemed to have resigned himself to another year of football in the 2. Bundesliga, as the pace in the game slowed considerably in the second half. In the end it was Ellyes Skhiri who put the 1-5 final score on the scoreboard more than five minutes before the end.
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