RB Leipzig's Christoph Baumgartner celebrates after scoring a goal against Rot-Weiss Essen. (EPA Images pic)BERLIN: Christoph Baumgartner scored twice in the final 12 minutes to rescue a 10-man RB Leipzig in a 2-1 German Cup second round win at third-division Rot-Weiss Essen on Tuesday.
Essen's Lucas Brumme gave the hosts the lead after nine minutes, and Leipzig's task got harder just before half-time when Nicolas Seiwald picked up a second yellow card.
Leipzig, who won the competition back-to-back in 2022 and 2023, were on track for an early elimination until Baumgartner scored two goals inside five minutes.
The night before the match, Essen fans had concreted over the away fan entrance, with city authorities in a race against time to clear the entrance before kick-off.
