Rot-Weiss Essen celebrated a 3:1 win at KFC Uerdingen in the Lower Rhine Cup. This is how Lucas Brumme assesses the progress. He reported that the coach had to get loud at the break.

After the final whistle, the Rot-Weiss Essen players had to take a deep breath. After all, the Lower Rhine Cup quarter-final at KFC Uerdingen was not for the faint-hearted.

The underdogs took a completely surprising 1:0 lead in the first half – and deservedly so. Essen’s performance in the first 45 minutes was too error-prone and pomaded. Despite 80 percent possession, RWE were rarely able to create any attacking threat.

“At half-time, the coach told us to work our asses off. The coach also got a bit louder,” explained Lucas Brumme in the post-match interview. It was also Brumme who turned things around in the second half. His shot from around 25 meters made it 1:1. It was his second goal in an RWE shirt.

From this point onwards, the visitors pushed for progress – and were rewarded in the final quarter of an hour with goals from Cedric Harenbrock (75′) and Moussa Doumbouya (90′). Their improved performance meant that they deserved to reach the semi-finals, but the 3:1 victory was hanging by a thread at times.

Brumme also paid tribute to the opponents: “Cup matches are always exhausting. You have to get through it somehow. From the 30th minute onwards, we kept up the pressure the whole time, even when you run into a counter-attack. When I scored, everyone shouted for me to shoot. And that’s what I did. Luckily it worked out. The most important thing is that we’ve progressed.”

One reason for the success on Wednesday evening was the tactical switch to a 3-5-2 system in the second half. RWE had much more pace in the game after the break and were able to create a few chances as a result. From then on, Brumme played as a left central defender in a back three. “That worked well. When you watch Bayer Leverkusen, you always have players going forward in the back three. It feels like the two outside center-backs are at the opponent’s penalty area,” emphasized the 24-year-old.

We still have some unfinished business from the first leg against Verl (0:5, editor’s note). We didn’t play well there. Now we have to give everything in the second half. Of course we want three points.

Lucas Brumme

After their success in the Lower Rhine Cup, Rot-Weiss Essen want to get back to winning ways in the 3rd division: On Sunday (March 10, 4:30 p.m.), RWE will host SC Verl. Brumme is aiming for a three-pointer:

“We want to win every game. We still have some unfinished business from the first leg against Verl (0:5, editor’s note). We didn’t play well there. Now we have to give everything in the second half. Of course we want three points. “