Two former German Bundesliga champions Eintracht Frankfurt and Borussia Dortmund will battle for supremacy at the Deutsche Bank Park on January 17.
Both teams have had a decent start to their Bundesliga campaigns, as the Black and Yellows sit fifth, while Eintracht Frankfurt sit second, pending the results of the coming fixtures.
This season has been one to remember for Toppmoller Dino, who took over at the helm of affairs last season. They already showed glimpses of what they could do last season after they finished sixth in the Bundesliga. This season, they are currently placed second, seven points behind league leaders Bayern Munich. They have picked seven wins, two draws, and two losses from five first eleven games.
They started the campaign on a low, suffering a disappointing 2-0 defeat against Borussia Dortmund in the reverse fixture. A brace from Jamie Gittens sealed the three points for the 1996 Bundesliga champions.
However, they bounced back in their next game against Hoffenheim. They picked a 3-1 win, courtesy of goals from Hugo Ekitike, Hugo Larsson, and Omar Marmoush. Then they followed it up with wins over Wolfsburg, Borussia Monchengladbach, and Holstein Kiel.
However, they dropped the pace against league leaders Bayern Munich, in a pulsating 3-3 draw. Marmoush, who has been on fire this season, turned up clutch, scoring a last-minute equalizer. Their five-game unbeaten run eventually ended in mid-October, as they suffered a 2-1 loss at reigning Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen.
However, they picked up in their next game against Union Berlin, playing out a 1-1 draw. Then, in their next game against Bochum at the Deutsche Bank Park, they claimed a big 7-2 win. They then followed it up with wins against Stuttgart and Werder Bremen. As it stands, only Bayern Munich have picked more wins than Eintracht Frankfurt this season.
Meanwhile, Borussia Dortmund changed managers in the summer, with former Real Madrid midfielder Nuri Sahin replacing Edin Terzin, who had been in charge for the previous two seasons. The Black and Yellows also lost Jadon Sancho after the expiration of his loan deal.
It has been a decent start for Sahin, who is having his managerial debut in a top five league, after coaching Turkish Super Lig side Antalyaspor between 2021 and 2023. As stated earlier, Sahin had a great start to life after defeating Frankfurt I’m the reverse fixture. They then played out a goalless draw with Werder Bremen in their next game.
Dortmund bounced back to winning ways with a 4-2 win against strugglers Heidenheim at the Signal Iduna Park. Unfortunately for them, they failed to take that performance to their next game against Stuttgart as they fell to an embarrassing 5-1 defeat.
The Black and Yellows won their next game against Bochum but lost to Union Berlin in the game that followed. Since then, Borussia Dortmund have picked up wins against St. Pauli, RB Leipzig, and Freiburg, but they lost to Mainz and Augsburg.
This season, Eintracht Frankfurt have had some standout performers like Omar Marmoush, who has caught the eyes of top clubs in Europe. The Egyptian forward has provided eleven goals and seven assists at the time of writing. Ekitike has also been good with five goals and three assists.
Dortmund have also had some shining stars like Serhou Guirassy, who has six goals and one assist in the Bundesliga. Former Manchester City man Gittens has impressed with his ability to wriggle past defenders. He also has three goals and three assists to show.
With the kind of attacking talents that both teams have and the way both coaches set up, it promises to be a great game of football.
Match tickets
The epic match at Deutsche Bank Park in Frankfurt will kick off at 19:30 GMT on Friday, January 17th, 2025.
The 58,000-capacity stadium will host this league game between Die Adler and Die Schwarzgelben.
Getting Frankfurt v Borussia Dortmund tickets could take a lot of work given the standard of this game. Hence, you are advised to search ticket reselling sites should they be expectedly sold out on each club’s channels.
Team news
Line-ups
Frankfurt have been brilliant all season. Goalkeeper Kevin Trapp has been immense between the sticks for them, with the likes of Robin Koch, Tuta, and Theate Arthur among the regulars in the backline. Midfielders Larsson Hugo and Skhiri Ellyes have started every Bundesliga game this season. Omar Marmoush and the rest of the attackers have been excellent as well. However, Hojlund Oscar, Kristensen Rasmus and Theate Arthur are currently injured but could feature in this fixture.
Frankfurt XI: Kevin Trapp; Nnamdi Collins, Tuta, Robin Koch, Arthur Theate; Mario Gotze, Mahmoud Dahoud, Hugo Larsson, Ansgar Knauff; Omar Marmoush, Can Uzun.
Borussia Dortmund also have a decent fitness record heading into the game. Stars like Karim Adeyemi, Emre Can, and Julian Brandt have been dealing with slight injuries, but they should make it back in time. With that being said, Kobel should keep his place in goal, Schlotterbeck at the heart of the defence, skipper Can and Gross in the middle and Guirassy is expected to lead the line in this away fixture.
Borussia Dortmund XI: Gregor Kobel; Ramy Bensebaini, Waldemar Anton, Nico Schlotterbeck, Pascal Gross; Julian Brandt, Emre Can, Marcel Sabitzer; Donyell Malen, Serhou Guirassy, Karim Adeyemi.
Prediction
As stated earlier, both teams have some exciting youngsters, who are deadly in front of goal. The way both managers setup, they also leave spaces behind for opponents to exploit. To catch this fixture, it is advised that you get Frankfurt tickets on time.
Their head-to-head record shows that at least two goals have been scored in their past five meetings. Eintracht Frankfurt have scored in their last five games across all, while Dortmund have scored in all but one of their last five away games.
Dortmund have won two of their last five meetings against Eintracht Frankfurt while the other three have ended in draws.
Eintracht Frankfurt 2-2 Borussia Dortmund
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