Werder Bremen vs Eintracht Frankfurt preview: Plenty of potential for goals
Werder Bremen
Werder Bremen picked up a needed victory last weekend on the road to last-place Holstein Kiel.
A tricky away day at first, the visitors opened the scoring in stunning fashion. Marvin Ducksch went for goal from a very tight angle, and it’s a good thing he did as his effort flew into the top corner. It managed to not only beat the goalkeeper but also the defender on the line.
That gave Bremen a crucial lead, and they had to hold on to that advantage for a bit as they faced pressure. Following that stretch, another beautiful goal put them two in front as Felix Agu settled the ball from outside the box and curled it into the upper 90 over the goalkeeper.
The rest of the contest went by with little fanfare. Bochum had the energy knocked out of them, and Werder ultimately added a third very late on via a counter attack that was finished off by Marco Grull.
Getting the three points pretty much officially secured Bundesliga safety for the Green-Whites since it’s a 14-point gap from the bottom three with only seven matches left to play. What they’re really looking at is Europe, though.
Somehow, someway Werder are only six points off of 6th place. They’ve got a lot of work to do and a lot of teams to pass in the standings, but if they can go on a winning run, then they could sneak into the right places at the death.
That would have to start with another victory here.
Team news
Things are looking good on the injury front for Bremen, as they’ll only be missing centerbacks Anthony Jung and Milos Veljkovic.
Eintracht Frankfurt
Eintracht Frankfurt are flying high once again.
Many thought the club would struggle following the departure of superstar Omar Marmoush, but they’ve barely missed a step in his absence. They’re winning both domestically and internationally.
In the Bundesliga, the Eagles are in 3rd. They beat Stuttgart last time out, and they ended the day with an xG of nearly 4. It was a strong showing, and it highlighted how dangerous they remain up top with the likes of Hugo Ekitike and Mario Gotze.
In the Europa League, Frankfurt have made it to the quarterfinals. They dispatched Ajax following a dominant home showing in the second leg, and they’ll face Tottenham Hotspur this upcoming Thursday. Their gameplan has translated well abroad, and they’re legitimate contenders to win the tournament once again.
The job isn’t finished on either front. Eintracht are five points clear of 5th, but a poor run of form could see them dragged right back into the dogfight for Champions League qualification.
Frankfurt will fancy their chances this weekend, but they know they’ll have to play well if they want to add to their impressive goalscoring tally.
Team news
The team is going through an injury crisis, which will make things tough. The Eagles will potentially be without players like Ansgar Knauff, Can Uzun, Elye Wahi, Eric Ebimbe, Igor Matanovic, Kevin Trapp, Krisztian Lisztes, and Timothy Chandler.
