Frankfurt vs. Augsburg preview: Can Eintracht get back to winning ways?
On Matchday 30, Augsburg are off to Frankfurt, who haven’t won a league match since mid-February and are rapidly falling out of the European conversation.
Frankfurt
Eintracht sit 9th in the table, having not claimed all three points from any of their previous eight Bundesliga games. Oliver Glasner’s side did not compete last week against BVB and desperately need to right the ship.
However, they still can secure European football through the DFB-Pokal, as Eintracht play Stuttgart in the semis on Wednesday. Glasner will likely stick with a back three on Saturday despite several injured center defenders, but Daichi Kamada could return to the starting lineup.
Their trainer mentioned, "It’s a very important game. We’re playing at home, haven’t won in a long time and want to celebrate a home victory. - We’ve concluded that we need to be more ambitious when facing the opponents’ goal."
Team News
Jesper Lindstrøm will be back in the squad, while it’s probably still too early for Evan Ndicka, Philipp Max, Kristijan Jakic and Hrvoje Smolcic. Randal Kolo Muani has adductor problems, but he’s still expected to play.
Augsburg
Augsburg are also struggling and haven’t won a league contest in nearly two months. They aren’t out of the relegation battle quite yet and will need a few more points to secure their safety.
The injury list is lengthy for Augsburg, as the midfield looks to be the healthiest of all parts of the pitch. Dion Beljo and Ermedin Demirovic should start together up top, while either Renato Veiga or Robert Gumny will fill in for the injured Iago on the left.
Enrico Maaßen commented, "Every weekend we have the chance to make a big step. We have to score points ourselves and aim to get a three-pointer. Then we don't have to look at the competition either.”
Team News
Rafal Gikiewicz, Mërgim Berisha, Fredrik Jensen and Iago are unavailable along with several more long-term absentees. Niklas Dorsch and Kelvin Yeboah will likely return to the squad, but they aren’t ready to play from the off quite yet.