A 4-2 penalty shoot-out win over Hannover takes Hans Meyer's side into the semi-finals and one step away from a Berlin final and a potential place in next season's UEFA Cup.

At the end of a goalless 120 minutes at the Franken Stadium, Meyer played the ace up his sleeve by substituting goalkeeper Rafael Schafer for penalty specialist Daniel Klewer.

The second-choice Nurnberg goalkeeper saw less than a minute of genuine action before seeing his club through to the next round with a brace of crucial penalty saves.

He first denied Silvio Schroter and then kept out Jiri Stajner's effort as Jawhar Mnari, Javier Pinola, Jan Polak and Dominik Reinhardt all found the target for the hosts.

They are joined in the last four by Wolfsburg, who are coached by former Nurnberg boss Klaus Augenthaler.

The Wolves had no problem in seeing off fellow Bundesliga side Alemannia Aachen, with Diego Klimowicz (12) and Marcelinho (25) on target in a 2-0 win.

Meanwhile, the last remaining second division club in the competition saw their involvement ended by last year's beaten finalists Eintracht Frankfurt.

Kickers Offenbach were unable to benefit from home advantage and Frankfurt, who have not won in the Bundesliga for eight games, were able to claim a much-needed confidence boost with a 3-0 win.

Naohiro Takahara (61 and 72) was on target twice in the second half after Michael Fink had given Friedhelm Funkel's side an 11th-minute lead.

The remaining quarter-final will be played on Wednesday night, when Stuttgart play host to Hertha Berlin.