In the Bundesliga relegation playoffs, Bochum experienced a thrilling reversal of fortune. In the first round at home, Bochum lost 0-3 to Düsseldorf, and it looked like the road to relegation was in jeopardy. However, in the second round of the match, Bochum showed tenacity and excellent tactical adjustments, and ultimately scored three goals in a row, successfully relegated.
Only 18 minutes into the match, Bochum made it 1-0 with a goal from Hoffmann, assisted by Steger, which gave Bochum hope and put Düsseldorf under pressure. Afterwards, Bochum continued to intensify their offense in an attempt to increase the score. In the 66th minute, Steger sent another great pass to Hoffmann, who scored twice to make the score 2-0. At this point, Bochum had already seen the light of relegation.
At the start of the second half, Düsseldorf stepped up their offense in an attempt to equalize the score. However, Bochum's defense was solid and didn't give their opponents too many chances. In the 70th minute, Bochum was given a penalty kick opportunity. Steger took the penalty kick and made the score 3-0. At this point, the total score of the two rounds of matches had become 3-3, and the two sides were back to the same starting line. In the ensuing game, neither team was able to rewrite the score and the game went into overtime. In the extra time, both sides failed to create too many chances, and the game was eventually dragged into a penalty shootout.
In the penalty shootout, Bochum performed even better. They managed to score all the first 5 penalties, while Düsseldorf missed the 7th one. In the end, Bochum won the penalty shootout 6-5 and defeated their opponents 9-8 on aggregate to stay in the tournament.
