RB Leipzig vs. Eintracht Frankfurt preview: Two top-six sides face off
RB Leipzig will begin the new year with a home game against Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday.
RB Leipzig
Having won 10, drawn three and lost three of their 16 league games, Leipzig currently sit in the top four with a six-point buffer to fifth-placed Borussia Dortmund. That gap could have been even greater if Leipzig had won their final game of 2023 against Werder Bremen. Unfortunately for die Roten Bullen, Loïs Openda saw his opener cancelled out by Justin Njinmah’s 75th-minute equaliser.
Although they would have been disappointed to miss out on three points, the result did extend their unbeaten run to five matches in all competitions. After rounding off the calendar year with an away game, Marco Rose's side will begin 2024 in front of their own supporters. They are one of three teams yet to lose a Bundesliga home game this season, while they have won each of their previous six competitive matches at the Red Bull Arena.
They can also take confidence from the fact they have won their last two meetings with Frankfurt, including a 2-0 victory in June’s DFB-Pokal final.
Team News
Willi Orban and Dani Olmo are expected to miss out through injury, while Amadou Haidara is currently on international duty with Mali.
Eintracht Frankfurt
Sixth-placed Frankfurt are sitting nine points adrift of their opponents after winning six, drawing six and losing four of their 16 league games this season. In their final outing of 2023, die Adler left it late to produce a dramatic fightback against Borussia Mönchengladbach, with Aurélio Buta and Robin Koch scoring in stoppage time to clinch a 2-1 victory.
That result represented a second straight home league win, and they will be desperate to produce those sort of performances on their travels, having failed to win any of their last three away league games (D1, L2). Frankfurt’s hopes of claiming an away win this weekend will be tempered by the fact they have never won a game at the Red Bull Arena. Their previous seven away league matches against Leipzig have produced three draws and four defeats, including a 2-1 loss in their most recent trip in February last year.
Team News
Timothy Chandler and Mehdi Loune are ruled out through injury, while Sebastian Rode is a doubt. Farès Chaïbi, Omar Marmoush and Ellyes Skhiri are currently away on international duty.
