Who will play on the left side of defense next Saturday in the Bundesliga match in Gladbach against Eintracht Frankfurt? It wouldn’t be too much of a surprise if it was Philipp Max, who didn’t play a minute in the 5-1 home loss to Leverkusen. He was one of the four Eintracht professionals who were not used at all in the duel with the class leader.
Left-back Niels Nkounkou, on the other hand, was on the pitch for 70 minutes before he was substituted – which some felt was too long. Because the 23-year-old Frenchman was far from the form on the left side of defense that would have been necessary to be an almost equal opponent for the Bayer players. Once again, Nkounkou, whose maturation process doesn’t want to get going, made serious mistakes – despite the (learning) help from the trainer in the daily training sessions during the week.
After Leverkusen’s lesson in efficiency, Dino Toppmöller did not want to judge individual players. However, the football teacher made it clear in his bitter assessment: “It drives me crazy and really annoys us all,” he said, referring to the bad individual mistakes that the Frankfurters, who were often too sleepy, had made. And that’s the case again this season, which is why we have to speak of a never-ending chain of errors.
“This is not ideal for us”
When asked by media representatives, Toppmöller then commented specifically on the repeat offender Nkounkou and his misfires. The coach emphasized that he would “under no circumstances break the baton” over his player and announced further support for the young player. But Toppmöller also had to state in his assessment that the Frenchman was “very inconsistent in his performance”. “That’s not ideal for us.” The coach made it clear to Nkounkou that he finally had to learn from his mistakes. This much is clear: Toppmöller’s patience is not limitless.
Nkounkou’s performance in the clash with the new German champions, who are undefeated in 48 games this season and who are currently the benchmark in the Bundesliga, was a step backwards. Before the encounter, Nkounkou had promised in a press session that he would work diligently to correct his mistakes.
Not consistent enough: Eintracht defender Niels Nkounkou (right) in a duel with Leverkusen’s Nathan TellaEPA
The practical test under difficult conditions – Bayer challenged Eintracht even without a top line-up and without playing to the limit – revealed once again that the fickle Frenchman’s poor performances ultimately outweighed the others. The left-back was often unable to follow the nimble Leverkusen player Nathan Tella. But that’s not all: in the 58th minute of the game, Nkounkou pulled Tella’s jersey for everyone to see – even though he was on his way out of the penalty area.
A gross disorientation of the culprit at this moment. Referee Christian Dingert had no choice but to award a penalty for the title holder; Exequiel Palacios safely converted to make it 3-1. Nkounkou had done his team a disservice with his amateurish behavior. Even when the score was 2-1 shortly before half-time, the Frenchman wasn’t up to speed; After Eintracht’s Tuta allowed Leverkusen’s Adam Hlozek to cross, Patrik Schick headed the 2-1 thanks to his aerial superiority in a duel with Nkounkou.
It was easy for Bayer 04 – the other goals were scored by Granit Xhaka, Jeremie Frimpong and Victor Boniface from the penalty spot – to gain a winning advantage. Toppmöller had to admit that his team’s duel management was “not very resolute”. He had expressly asked this of his players when looking forward to the master’s exam. But so far his team has not been able to permanently eliminate the individual weaknesses that have been recurring in this round.
“We want to get this thing fixed next week”
But a top performance from everyone would have been required against Leverkusen. “You have to play a perfect game to get something,” said defense chief Robin Koch. Speaking of perfection: Coach Xabi Alonso was asked at the press conference how close Leverkusen’s game was to perfection. “No, we’re not talking about perfection. But we are very satisfied. Our level and our consistency are great,” was the answer from the Basque, who was enthusiastic about his team.
Markus Krösche, a great patient person as he claims, once again demonstrated his ability to suffer. Afterwards, the Frankfurt sports director was conspicuously reserved with criticism, especially where it would have been appropriate. “Mistakes happen with young players,” he said, showing understanding for the errors. Krösche considered the penalty caused by Nkounkou to be “avoidable, pulling on the jersey like that in the penalty area, you can’t do that,” he said. Perhaps the sports director didn’t want to put any further strain on the mood.
Despite the fact that Frankfurt have only won one of the last seven games, the goal of securing an international starting place remains close. With a win in Gladbach on the penultimate matchday, Eintracht would remain sixth in the table and would at least be assured of participation in the Europa League. “We want to get this thing fixed next week,” said Koch and advised his team to “get the game over with quickly. “You don’t have to walk around for five days and be in a bad mood. We have to fix the mistakes and take the good things with us.”
There were actually one or two bright spots. Hugo Ekitiké’s header to make it 1-1 was the Frenchman’s third goal in a row. It was also Frankfurt’s first goal in the 257th corner attempt. Eintracht needed a whopping 52 games to achieve their long-awaited sense of success. The last time Ansgar Knauff scored from a corner was on November 5, 2022 in Augsburg.
Philipp Max could be back in Frankfurt’s starting line-up on May 11th in Gladbach. It would be the 18th time in this round. The main reason for this was Nkounkou (13 starting eleven appearances). Compared to him, the 30-year-old Max is definitely the more mature player.