ZFC Meuselwitz trembles to victory: Cup defender shines in the penalty shootout!

ZFC Meuselwitz trembles to victory: Cup defender shines in the penalty shootout!

On September 6, 2025, an exciting duel was on the agenda in the second main round of the Thuringian State Cup: the defending champions ZFC Meuselwitz played against FSV Schleiz. Despite a strong starting position, the ZFC had difficulty asserting itself against Schleizer, who defended in a disciplined manner. MDR reports that the first good chance for ZFC came in the 32nd minute through David Pfeil, whose shot was parried by Schleiz' keeper Luis Groh. Shortly afterwards, in the 33rd minute, Schleiz took the lead through Albert Pohl, who scored after a long ball.

Although Meuselwitz didn't give up and was able to equalize in the 59th minute with a header from Florian Hansch, the game remained exciting. Ben Keßler saw the traffic light card in the 77th minute after repeated foul play, which made the situation even more difficult for the ZFC. Schleiz, on the other hand, remained active but was unable to score any further goals, which meant the game went into overtime. The ZFC itself started the game as favorites, but were unable to match the performance they had shown in previous cup encounters.

A thrilling penalty shootout

In extra time, Meuselwitz increased the tempo, but the necessary clear chances failed to materialize. Both Pohl and Martin Berger missed the goal in the 115th and 116th minutes as the pressure mounted on both sides. Ultimately the penalty shootout had to decide. Here ZFC goalkeeper Justin Fietz showed himself to be a true hero by parrying two shots and thus saving his team an early exit in the TFV Cup. Despite progressing, Meuselwitz should step up his game in the coming rounds to seriously fight for the title.

The game took place at the sports complex at Fasanengarten in Schleiz, where the hosts are in second-to-last place in the table in the current season with a score of 0 from 3 games. However, Schleiz successfully prevailed against BSG Chemie Kahla in the cup and won 3-1. These results show the high potential of the opponents and the challenges that await ZFC Meuselwitz. The 2025 cup winners should remember their last duels against Schleiz, when they ran away with an impressive 8-0 win three years ago.

The look forward

In addition, other exciting games took place on the same day, including the duel between ZFC Meuselwitz II against SV Blau-Weiß Niederpöllnitz, which kicked off at 3:00 p.m. The ZFC women's team will also play against SG LVB in Leipzig on Sunday, September 7th. The fans are asked to support the team with their presence. Information about joint trips to support is available from fan representative Mario Kirsch or board member Thomas Etzold. If you would like to continue following the events in the Thuringian State Cup, you can also watch the events via the FuPa live ticker track.