Magdeburg coach Petrik Sander complained vehemently about the field at Kaiserstuhlstadion after the first-round DFB-Pokal match against Bahlinger SC, an Oberliga team from southern Baden. “We wanted to play soccer, they wanted to play soccer—there was only one thing that didn’t allow it, and that was the field. You just have to say it plain and simple,” Sander railed right at the start of the press conference following the second-division team’s 4-0 victory.
“I’ve been in the game for quite a while, but I’ve never seen anything like this on this scale—I’ve never experienced it like this,” Sander continued. “If I want to play soccer, I need a decent playing surface. This isn’t a good playing surface.” In his opinion, the field didn’t meet the standards required for a first-round match in the DFB Cup.