Frankfurt slips into the crisis – Eintracht without a win for five games
Frankfurt cannot get beyond a draw against VfL Bochum and lose touch with the Champions League places. Eintracht only got a point thanks to Kolo Muani, who converted after a foul from the penalty spot.
IIn the midst of turbulent days, Eintracht Frankfurt must continue to wait for a sporting liberation. Despite a dominant performance, the Europa League winner coached by Oliver Glasner was unable to get beyond a 1-1 (1-1) draw against VfL Bochum, who were threatened with relegation, and has been waiting for a competitive win since mid-February. The goal by Randal Kolo Muani (22nd minute / penalty kick) was not enough for Eintracht after the early goal by Takuma Asano (14th).
“It was a one-goal game in the second half, too. We had an incredible number of chances to score. It’s incredibly bitter and annoying that you don’t win the game,” said Frankfurt’s Philipp Max, attesting to a “better performance” than last time for his team. “We can not Do more. It just has to ring again.”
The long-awaited return to the Champions League is becoming more and more distant for the Frankfurters, who, in addition to a sporting crisis, are also struggling with an internal power struggle over board spokesman Axel Hellmann and supervisory board boss Philip Holzer.
The dress rehearsal for the DFB Cup on Tuesday against 1. FC Union Berlin failed. Bochum and coach Thomas Letsch, on the other hand, can live with the point in the relegation battle after the last two wins.
Kolo Muani is Frankfurt’s life insurance company
For Eintracht coach Glasner, everything was initially the same as in the past few weeks: Up front, his players around Rafael Borré (7th and 10th) proliferated with the chances, at the back, the simplest mistakes were punished. With a view to the many goals conceded from standards and long balls, the coach from Austria at DAZN spoke of a “never ending story” – it should not end on this uncomfortable floodlit Friday either.
A long throw-in by Christopher Antwi-Adjei became a great danger because two players were completely blank in the middle. Kevin Trapp parried Anthony Losilla’s shot, but he had no chance when Asano added it. The next setback was looming for the Hessians who had not won in six competitive games.
Randal Kolo Muani (right) has been one of the few bright spots at Eintracht in recent weeks
Quelle: Getty Images/Alex Grimm
But Eintracht, led by striker Kolo Muani, played more playfully than they had in a long time. It was the French national striker who almost single-handedly equalized. First Kolo Muani made it into the penalty area, where Ivan Ordets brought him down just before the shot. Then he transformed from the point ice cold, it was his twelfth goal of the season. Ordets was well served with a yellow card for thwarting a clear scoring opportunity from close range. The powerful Eintracht had more scenes, but before the break the necessary precision was missing.
Bochum saves the point over time
Even after the change, the European Cup winner played primarily. And the balls kept coming back to Kolo Muani, who failed in the long duel with Bochum goalkeeper Manuel Riemann with a header and then missed the ball when attempting an acrobatic overhead kick.
Bochum tried to save a point win in Frankfurt over time. Again Riemann (61) parried a free-kick from Philipp Max, previously a contact by Antwi-Adjei against Frankfurt’s Aurelio Buta in the penalty area was not enough for another penalty. It was fitting that a Borré header was cleared off the line. On the other hand, Frankfurt was lucky that a free kick from Kevin Stöger only landed on the crossbar.
