Days of decisions at Eintracht Frankfurt

This Thursday, Frankfurt Eintracht can create a unique selling point. The prerequisite for this is that they win their play-off second leg at home against Levski Sofia and thus enter the group stage of the Conference League. In this (successful) case, Eintracht would be the first German club to have played in all six major European club football competitions. In the encounter from 8.30 p.m. there will be a premiere in Frankfurt: For the first time, the Hessians will compete in a competitive game with a club from Bulgaria in the Waldstadion.

Levski Sofia, who were happy to draw 1-1 in the first leg, arrive in Frankfurt well rested; the club was last challenged in the Bulgarian league on August 13. Away from home, Sofia are unbeaten in four European games, winning two and drawing two. However, Eintracht can also score points with their statistics. The last home defeat so far and the only one this calendar year, she had to accept in February in the Champions League round of 16 against Naples. But the Frankfurters have never allowed themselves two failures in a row in the Waldstadion on the international stage. They can rightly call themselves strong at home.

It is eagerly awaited who coach Dino Toppmöller will send into the race in a duel with Sofia. Jesper Lindström will definitely not be in the Frankfurt formation. Because the Danish national player will join the Italian champions SSC Napoli, on Tuesday afternoon he completed the medical check in Italy. Two criteria were decisive for his upcoming change of job: The fast Scandinavian can once again show off his strengths in the Champions League.

Lenz and Borré should go

In addition, Lindstrom, who has scored twelve goals and nine assists in 57 Bundesliga games, expects to become a regular in Naples. That’s what he said when he spoke to the Danish national team some time ago: “When an offer comes, I look at the style of play, the coach and the other players on the team. If the club has a clear first choice for my position, that’s not for me.” Because: “It would be ridiculous to leave the fantastic Eintracht to sit somewhere else on the bench,” he said. Internationally, he only managed one goal in his 16 appearances for Eintracht.

Sebastian Rode will also not be part of the squad against Sofia. The captain reported back on Monday after his injury break due to a calf injury and completed large parts of the substitute training after the game on Sunday in Mainz. However, the 32-year-old has not been registered for the two play-off games; Eintracht then put Kristijan Jakic on the list instead of Rode at the last minute. However, the Frankfurters have justified hopes of being able to fall back on their leading player on Sunday (3.30 p.m.) in the home game against Cologne.

Christopher Lenz will not be considered on Thursday. The left-back is also ineligible for the clash with Sofia. In addition, the 28-year-old is one of the sales candidates at Eintracht. And now Lenz, who has no prospects of a regular place in Frankfurt, seems to be surprisingly opening a door at Champions League participant RB Leipzig. The Saxons are looking for a back-up for their national player David Raum. As a transfer fee for the Berlin-born Lenz, whose contract with Eintracht expires in the summer of 2024, an amount of between 1.5 and two million euros is under discussion; when the transfer is completed, the Hessians would receive unexpected additional income. Frankfurt, on the other hand, signed the young Brazilian goalkeeper Kaua Santos on Tuesday and could add Niels Nkounkou from AS Saint-Etienne for the left flank.

Like Lenz, Rafael Borré is also part of the list of possible departures. The Colombian international is said to have had a number of offers in recent weeks. The striker, who hasn’t played a minute in all three competitions this season – the cup game at Lok Leipzig also took place without him – apparently rejected most of them. Now FC Valencia is named as a buyer for Borré. The Spaniards are said to be ready to pay seven million euros for the attacker.

Christoph Ehrhardt, Beirut Published/Updated: , Recommendations: 11 Jörg Daniels, Frankfurt Published/Updated: , Recommendations: 3 Jörg Daniels Published/Updated: , Recommendations: 3

It is uncertain whether exceptional striker Randal Kolo Muani will be available to coach Toppmöller against Sofia. It depends on whether Eintracht and Paris Saint-Germain can agree on a transfer for the France international. By the time this issue went to press, negotiation poker was in full swing. Even if the transfer period ends on Friday at 6 p.m., it is to be expected that Eintracht would like to have clarity by Thursday at the latest. With a view to his balance sheet, Kolo Muani’s involvement would be a win for Frankfurt. The striker has scored three of the last four European Cup goals. In all competitions, he has scored in each of his last six games at the Waldstadion.