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Fortuna Düsseldorf were relegated to the 3. Liga (Germany’s third tier) following a 3-0 defeat against direct relegation rivals Greuther Fürth on the final day.
F95 started the day in 16th but found themselves a goal down inside the opening two minutes when former player Felix Kraus struck. Elias Egouli then scored an own goal before Noel Futkeu’s 19th goal of the season secure Fortuna’s fate as Fürth leapfrogged their opponents into the relegation play-off.
“I don’t know what to say,” explained Florian Kastenmeier, goalkeeper and captain. “This is one of the worst days. We had a very good starting position and it was in our hands, but we failed in every way. There are no excuses for it.
“I have no idea what goes through each individual’s mind when we draw up a game plan and no one sticks to it.”
Fortuna CEO, Alexander Jobst, added: “It’s brutal, and there’s a sense of disbelief.
“We had everything in our own hands but played a first half that was absolutely unacceptable. Everyone needs to ask themselves: ‘Did we give it all on the pitch?’ Judging by how the first half felt we didn’t.
“This hurts incredibly – for our fans and for our city. We need to regroup now.”
