It was a game that never really sparked and a tale of two goalkeepers that made crucial saves when called upon. Köln were by far the better side, but some resolute defending saw Paderborn come away with a big point.

After a disappointing draw with VfB Stuttgart in mid-week, Peter Stöger's side would have been keen to get back on track with a win against their fellow promoted side. For this game, Slawomir Peszko and Marcel Risse dropped to the bench for Dusan Svento and Bard Finne.

Paderborn and André Breitenreiter were equally desperate to get things back on track; they'd conceded eight goals since the winter break and the head coach made a series of changes to try and amend their leaky defence. Michael Heinloth, Rafa and Alban Meha came in for Jens Wemmer, Patrick Ziegler and Srjdan Lakic, who all started in the 3-0 defeat to Hamburger SV.

The opening period of the game was rather even between the two promoted sides, with Daniel Halfar creating plenty of problems for the Paderborn defence. Unfortunately there were no clear-cut chances, as Köln enjoyed the majority of the possession.

The Billy Goats had been trying to force a break-through but had only managed to get one shot on target, while their visitors were struggling just to get a shot off at all.

Neither side looked like breaking the deadlock, especially after some lacklustre finishing in midweek from Stöger's side. It was Bard Finne who had the best chance of the first half, but Lukas Kruse was able to prevent Köln from earning a half-time lead.

Unfortunately the Karneval atmosphere remained in the stands, as an exciting match-up flattered to deceive in a less-than-entertaining opening forty-five minutes.

The second half got off to a better start; Heinloth, after cutting inside, unleashed a powerful shot that had Timo Horn scrambling across to ensure it was covered.

Horn was called into action soon after, with Elias Kachunga nipping in at the near post to turn a cross goal-ward. It took a remarkable reaction save to deny the former Borussia Mönchengladbach forward, who thought he'd opened the scoring.

Kevin Vogt went even closer at the other end; the midfielder made a lung-busting run forward and attempted to chip the onrushing Kruse only for it to drift just wide, much to his disgust.

Both sides had chances from corners, as Horn and Kruse did well to stop the respective attackers from putting their side in the lead.

In the end, neither team could find a way through and the game ended the way it started, despite Kazuki Nagasawa's late chance being saved by Kruse.

The draw does little to help either team. Köln remain 10th, while Paderborn drop to 15th. Breitenreiter's men are on the road again next weekend, facing off against Hannover 96. It's a big test for the Billy Goats, however, as they take on Gladbach in the Rhein derby.

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About the author
Jonathan Walsh
SoccerSight IFA commentator. VAVEL deputy editor-in-chief/VAVEL Bundesliga editor-in-chief and writer. Email: [email protected]