Bayern progress, Mainz shock Schalke in German Cup

 BERLIN, Dec. 18 (Xinhua) -- Mainz flabbergasted Schalke 2-1 owing to the late winner by Nicolai Mueller whereas Bayern Munich progressed into the last eight following a 2-0 win at Augsburg in DFB Pokal (German Cup) on Tuesday.

Ten men Bayern booked the round of the last eight after a hard earned 2-0 win over rivals Augsburg.
Augsburg started highly motivated into the match to give the German record champions a tough time at the opening period.
Augsburg' s courageous 1 performance nearly got rewarded as Ja Cheol Koo's long-range shot needed a deflection to the post by goalkeeper Manuel Neuer to avoid the opener.
The promising 2 chances for Augsburg seemed like a wakening call for Bayern Munich as clinical Mario Gomez opened the scoring with the first chance at the 26th minute.
Bayern retracted 3 with the neat lead whereas Augsburg was in search for the equalizer.
Two minutes into the second half Bayern midfielder Franck Ribery was dismissed with a straight red card following a violent conduct to weaken his side.
Augsburg started a run of Bayern's goal but yet they failed to exploit their numerical advantage. Instead Xherdan Shaqiri sealed the deal for Bayern, five minutes before final whistle, when he slotted home an assist by Thomas Mueller to mark the final 2-0 score.
Clinical Mainz eliminates struggling Schalke from German Cup after a 2-1 away victory.
Both sides staged a fast paced match but yet it was Schalke's Cirprian Marica who ensured the first chance of the match when he missed by header twice.
As the match progressed, the visitors took over to break the deadlock 4 with 30 minutes played as Marco Caliguri utilized 5 an Adam Szalai through ball to slot home from 18 meters.
The "Royal Blues 6" frenetically pressed for the leveller but all their efforts looked like an act of desperation, as they were unable to overcome Mainz defence before the break.
After the interval 7 Schalke controlled the ball to press the visitors into defence. The hosts were able to produce a bunch of goal scoring opportunities but Tranquillo Barnetta and Julian Draxler left their chanced unexploited.
With 75 minutes on the clock Schalke finally overcame Mainz's bulwark 8 as Klaas Jan Huntelaar equalized the score when he utilized the build up play by Marica.
It was a short-lived joy by the hosts as Mainz responded eight minutes later with the winner by Nicolai Mueller to knock out struggling Schalke.The "Royal Blues" failed to break the spell, as they remain winless from seven games.
Elsewhere, third division side Kickers Offenbach eliminated Dusseldorf with a 2-0 home win and Freiburg overcame third division team Karlruher SC 1-0.
The following fixtures 9 are scheduled for Wednesday: Wolfsburg encounter Leverkusen, Bochum face 1860 Munich, defending champions Dortmund clash Hannover and Stuttgart host Cologne.?