Dortmund set up German Cup semi against Bayern

BERLIN: Christian Pulisic set Borussia Dortmund on their way to a comfortable 3-0 win over third-tier Sportfreunde Lotte on Tuesday that took them into the semi-finals of the German Cup.

All the goals came in the second half, with Ousmane Dembele and Marcel Schmelzer netting after Pulisic’s opener to take Thomas Tuchel’s team into a last-four tie against Bayern Munich.

“It couldn’t have been a better evening for us,” Dortmund midfielder Gonzalo Castro told ARD after the game. “Lotte are a very good team, and we said before the game that we just wanted to get to the semifinals.”

The original fixture was cancelled two weeks ago, after Lotte’s pitch was deemed unplayable by officials. The rescheduled game took place in the neutral venue of Osnabrueck.

Minnows Lotte had already beaten two Bundesliga opponents in a superb cup run this season. After a bright start to the game, it seemed their fairytale might continue.

Dortmund, though, proved to be too strong for the home side. Even without their injured star striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, they overpowered Lotte in the second half.

Lotte began bravely, creating several half-chances in the opening 15 minutes. The best opportunity fell to Tim Wendel, who was denied by goalkeeper Roman Buerki in a one-on-one situation.

Dortmund posed little threat in the first half, creating only a handful of chances. Long-range efforts from Gonzalo Castro and Raphael Guerreiro were as close as they came to goal in the first half.

“We took a bit of time to get into the game, but we didn’t make any major mistakes before half-time,” Dortmund captain Schmelzer told ARD. “Then we put in a very good performance in the second half.”