Magdeburg stepped up their game significantly in the second half and blew the scoreline out to 5-2. Düsseldorf were considerably weakened by the red card and couldn't carry their strong performance from the first half through to the final whistle. Towards the end of the game, a number of supporters left the stands following reports that a car had been driven into a Christmas market in Magdeburg.

The ball hits the Düsseldorf net for the fifth time. Siebert fails to clear the ball properly and Hercher slots the rebound into the far corner.

There will be two minutes of additional time.

Each side makes two changes. However, the match is already pretty much decided.

Fortuna make two more changes, bringing on Vermeij and Zimmermann for van Brederode and Sobottka.

Can Düsseldorf, reduced to ten men, come back and take something from this match?

With his second brace of the season (first one came against Braunschweig), Martijn Kaars confirms his status as Magdeburg's top scorer with a seventh goal this season. Additionally, the Dutchman provided a brilliant assist for Atik's goal.

The leveller comes somewhat out of nowhere. El Hankouri crosses from the half-space, and Kaars lays it off beautifully first time to Atik. The winger gets a free shot and strikes it cleanly into the left corner.

After the restart, the game remains unchanged. Magdeburg are hardly present in attack and are mainly passing the ball around their own ranks. Düsseldorf occasionally create chances, but nothing has been converted so far.

We're into the second 45 minutes of the match.

Düsseldorf head into the break with a deserved, having converted two of their four on-target shots into goals. Magdeburg appear to lack ideas in their offensive play and will need to step it up in the second half to take any points from this match.

There will be two minutes of additional time.

Can one of the two teams take the lead before the half-time whistle? The match is currently losing momentum.

After the two goals and Fortuna's extended spell of dominance shortly afterwards, things have now calmed down a bit. Magdeburg are looking to gain confidence through long passing sequences.

In terms of possession, the first few minutes belonged to the visitors - but now Düsseldorf are also increasingly keeping the ball.

The match is under way in Düsseldorf.

Last season, Magdeburg lost 2-3 in Düsseldorf on Matchday 34. Magdeburg's goalscorers on that occasion were Connor Krempicki and Bryan Teixeira, who are now getting another chance in the starting XI.

Magdeburg make two changes after the 1-1 draw against Paderborn. Connor Krempicki and Bryan Teixeira start in place of Loric and Burcu (both not in the squad). The former last started in late October, while for Teixeira, this is only his second start of the season, with his previous one coming in the goalless draw against Elversberg all the way back on Matchday 1.

Tim Rossmann gets another chance in the starting XI, replacing Emmanuel Iyoha, who is missing from the Fortuna squad for the first time this season. This is the only change following the 1-1 draw against Schalke.

Reimann - Hugonet, Mathisen, Heber - Gnaka, Hercher, El Hankouri, Krempicki - Atik, Kaars, Teixeira

Kastenmeier - Oberdorf, Hoffmann, Siebert - Fridriksson, Sobottka, Haag, Rossmann - Jóhannesson, Myron van Brederode, Kownacki

"Psychologically, it feels good to win a football match first of all, because nothing replaces victories. We desperately want to win football matches because it feels incredibly good. This will be a challenge for us against the best away team in the league. You can see that Christian Titz has been given the opportunity to work for many, many years and has developed the team well."

"We are aware of the difficulty of the task. We know that in Düsseldorf we are facing a team that is very efficient. They are a defensively stable and disciplined side. This has been their hallmark since the beginning of the season. They have a mix of quick counter-attacking play and clean build-up play."

Daniel Heber made his Bundesliga 2 debut in the 3-2 defeat in Düsseldorf in January 2023.

Indeed, Düsseldorf have won all of their last five competitive matches against Magdeburg, whose last victory came on the road in the Regionalliga in March 2008.

Düsseldorf have narrowly won all four Bundesliga 2 encounters against Magdeburg (2-1, then 3-2 three times in a row).

Welcome along and thanks for joining us for build-up and live coverage of this Matchday 17 fixture between Fortuna Düsseldorf and 1. FC Magdeburg.