Red mist descends as 1.FC Köln thump 9-man Hamburg | OneFootball

A clash of the Bundesliga's newly promoted teams in 1.FC Köln and Hamburger SV took place this afternoon at the RheinEnergie Stadion. In what was a close-fought encounter, two red cards for the Hanseatic club proved to be the turning point as Köln ran out 4-1 winners.

The initial 20 minutes of this fixture passed by with relatively little to discuss. Aside from a well-struck volley and a rather wayward freekick from Florian Kainz, chances were limited. HSV's Nicolai Remberg picked up a yellow card for stopping a Köln counterattack.

Life was injected into the occasion when Effzeh claimed 24th-minute lead. Sambi Lokonga's unfortunate slip surrendered the ball to Kainz. The Austrian's effort and Maina's follow up were initially kept out until Ragnar Ache punished from close range at the third time of asking. 

Köln maintained their ascendancy with a fine counter-pressing game to force errors from which Kaminski and Maina fired wide. HSV's best chances fell to Dompé whose effort was kept out by Schwäbe, while Philippe's shot was met with a wonderful Cenk Özkacar block before the break. 

It took three second-half minutes for Köln to stretch their advantage to 2-0. Maina won the crucial freekick for Kainz to curl over the wall leaving Heuer-Fernandes no chance. HSV looked to have pulled a goal back but VAR spotted a foul by Philippe in the build-up. 

The Hanseatic club reduced the deficit eventually on the hour. Mikelbrenkis' cross from the right found Dompé to curl home from the edge of the box in style. Kwasniok wasted no time before introducing Tom Krauß, Dominic Heintz and Said El Mala. 

Philippe's luck seemed to be out altogether when he squared for Vuskovic to tap in but was found in an offside position. El Mala's impact was almost instantaneous for Köln as the talented youngster unleashed a tricky volley that crept over the HSV crossbar. 

The visitors found themselves down to 9 men entering the closing chapter. Substitute Pherai picked up a second yellow in seconds for a late tackle on Lund. Meanwhile, Fábio Vieira saw red for his protesting referee Daniel Schlager's decision resulting in a second booking.

Merlin Polzin hooked Lokonga for Glatzel in the hope of salvaging something. Twelve minutes of injury time followed, but Köln put it to bed on the break when Kaminski crossed in from the right for El Mala to tap in. The 4-1 rout was complete when the Polish winger was set up by El Mala as the youngster returned the favour.