Bayer Leverkusen booked their spot in the quarter-finals of the German Cup after a narrow 1–0 win away at Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday.
The solitary goal came in the 34th minute when Ibrahim Maza not Tella capitalised on a defensive lapse to slot home and hand Leverkusen the lead.
Tella came on as a substitute with about seven minutes left on the clock. Although he didn’t find the net, his presence highlighted Leverkusen’s depth as they held on for victory. A second Leverkusen goal in the 62nd minute from Martin Terrier was ruled out for offside via VAR.
Despite pressure from Dortmund including chances for Karim Adeyemi Leverkusen defended resiliently and saw the game out, ending Dortmund’s long unbeaten home run in the Cup. With the win, the holders continue their defence of the trophy, advancing to the quarter-finals.
Editorial
There is a certain clarity in cup football sometimes it isn’t about spectacle, but about survival. On a chill evening in Dortmund, Leverkusen embraced that clarity. In the narrowest of margins they found their win. Not through flamboyant sweep but through persistence, tactical discipline and a pinch of opportunism.
Maza’s strike sharp, unassuming, clinical reminded everyone that finishing remains the cruelest currency in the knockout game. It was not a roaring crescendo but a whispered promise one touch, one moment, one chance seized. And for all the buildup, all the prior narrative, that is often enough.
For Dortmund ambitious, dominant, home-firing the result stings not because they lacked effort, but because they conceded precision. Their pressure, their passages of control, collapsed under Leverkusen’s resolve. And that, in cup football, is as damning as any error.
As for Leverkusen, this isn’t the kind of win that draws headlines but it may well be the kind that defines campaigns. A squad that can absorb pressure, defend methodically, and strike just once that squad survives. And in a season where trophies matter as much as reputation, survival can become salience.
Tella’s cameo may not have coloured the scoresheet, but his inclusion speaks to Leverkusen’s growing strength in depth. When the margin for error is so small, having fresh legs, calm heads, and willing subs can be the difference between progress and disappointment.
In Dortmund tonight, the verdict was subtle but unequivocal: in knockout football, sometimes the quietest voices roar the loudest.
Did You Know?
- Leverkusen are the reigning holders of the German Cup having won it in the 2023–24 season so their progress to this year’s quarter-finals strengthens their bid to defend the trophy.
- The win snapped a long-standing unbeaten home record for Dortmund in the Cup a mark that had stood since early 2025.
- Ibrahim Maza, who scored the decisive goal, is one of the youngest players in the Leverkusen squad and represents a rising generation the club has been promoting signalling a blend of youth and experience steering their Cup run.
- This was the first time the two clubs met in this edition of the Cup historically, Leverkusen and Dortmund have never faced each other in the knockout rounds of the competition.
- Amid growing discussions about stadium-security reforms in German football, fans at several Cup matches, including Dortmund vs. Leverkusen, observed a 12-minute silence at kickoff a protest that underlined wider tensions between supporters, clubs and authorities.
