Eintracht Frankfurt is weak against Union Berlin for a long time and then misses the best chances. The spoilsport is a former Frankfurt resident.
Eintracht Frankfurt missed a home win in the Bundesliga. The Hessians drew 0-0 with Union Berlin on Saturday afternoon.
Hugo Ekitiké was a new starter at Eintracht – he replaced the ailing Hugo Larsson. The game started as expected: Union Berlin left the ball to Frankfurt and waited to be able to put a pinprick. Like in the 4th minute, when Union goalkeeper Frederik Ronnöw intercepted a corner and sent Yorbe Vertessen on his way with a long pass. The Belgian ran towards the goal but, under pressure from Ellyes Skhiri, shot over.
The lawn is once again a problem
Shortly afterwards, Robin Koch tried to clear a ball in the penalty area, but played it into Brenden Aaronson’s feet. However, the American missed his shot significantly (11th). Eintracht found it very difficult to move forward and repeatedly got stuck on one of Berlin’s defensive legs, especially with crosses from promising positions.
Omar Marmoush had the best chance with a free kick from a central position, but he shot it over the goal (32nd) – also because the Egyptian slipped slightly when taking it. The recently criticized Frankfurt lawn was anything but ideal for playing football this afternoon. However, the running was not an excuse for the weak first half.
Eintracht wakes up after almost an hour
At the start of the second half, the Berliners again had the first good chance: a catastrophic back pass from Skhiri ensured that Mikkel Kaufmann appeared free in front of Kevin Trapp. However, the striker narrowly missed the goal with his shot (48′).
It was only after almost an hour that Eintracht woke up. In the 57th minute, Ansgar Knauff put Ekitiké in the spotlight and Rönnow was able to defuse the shot from a tight angle. Two minutes later, the former Frankfurt player was there to counter a powerful Marmoush shot in the Union goal. Just a minute later, Tuta narrowly missed a cross from Marmoush at the far post.
Eintracht remains in sixth place
The next big chance didn’t take long to arrive: Junior Dina Ebimbe shot from close range, Rönnow was at it again this time and the ball danced in front of the line, but didn’t cross it because Danilho Doekhi was able to clear it in desperate need (66.) . Eintracht stayed on the trigger and pushed for the lead. Koch could have scored the winning goal in the 85th minute, but his header from a central position after Farès Chaibi’s cross missed the goal. The victory against Berlin, who were overwhelmed in the second round, would have been deserved, but Dino Toppmöller’s team was no longer able to achieve it and the points remained divided.
The Frankfurt team now have 41 points and are still in sixth place, which would entitle them to take part in the European Cup again.
Further information
Eintracht Frankfurt – 1.FC Union Berlin 0-0
Frankfurt: Trapp – Tuta, Koch, Pacho – Dina Ebimbe (90.+2 Chandler), Skhiri, Götze, Nkounkou (46. Max) – Knauff (79. Bahoya), Ekitiké (71. Chaibi), Marmoush
Berlin: Rönnow – Doekhi, Vogt, Diogo Leite – Trimmel (82. Juranovic), Tousart, Khedira, Gosens (89. Roussillon) – Vertessen (65. Volland), Aaronson (65. Laidouni) – Kaufmann (65. Hollerbach)
Yellow cards: Ekitiké, Nkounkou, Pacho / Diego Leite
Referee: Marco Fritz (Crow)
Viewers: 55.000
End of further information