That doesn’t happen very often in Frankfurt, the secret football capital of Germany: Eintracht plays three home games within seven days in three competitions. Only that Lesson against Liverpool FC (1:5) in the Champions League last Wednesday. Then the work win against FC St. Pauli (2-0) in the Bundesliga on Saturday. Now the highlight against Borussia Dortmund in the DFB Cup on Tuesday (from 6.30 p.m. in the live ticker and in the full radio report on sportschau.de).
And each time, not a single seat in the Waldstadion remains unoccupied, even though lavish football festivals are rare this season. One person is making progress these weeks as a Frankfurt life insurance company: Jonathan Burkardt has been on everyone’s lips since before the double pack at the weekend.
Sports director Markus Krösche is convinced: “If Jonny continues like this, he can also play a key role for the national team next summer.” But the guests also bring a strong national striker with them: Maximilian Beier recently shot BVB to victory late in the top game against 1. FC Köln (1-0).
Both with a large radius of action
Similar to Burkardt, Beier is also extremely quick on his feet and has a large radius of action. Most recently in the international matches against Luxembourg (4:0) and Northern Ireland (1:0) in the World Cup qualification, both were in demand as substitutes. Burkardt came on in stoppage time for goalscorer Nick Woltemade in his fifth international match in Belfast, while Beier replaced club colleague Karin Adeyemi in the middle of the second half in his seventh DFB appearance.
National coach Julian Nagelsmann appreciates their hard work and willingness to learn, and both are similarly flexible. Provided that Tim Kleindienst and perhaps Niclas Füllkrug are still in form, there could also be a duel between Burkardt and Beier for a place in the World Cup squad. Any self-promotion is therefore welcome this season.
The Frankfurter is extremely efficient
Coach Dino Toppmöller wasn’t sparing with praise for his match winner recently: “The 1-0 is a typical Jonny goal. He has that instinct, is in front of the defender at the last moment and nods the ball in.” The 2-0 is even a thing “Absolute dream goal and a top individual performance” been.
The former striker was impressed by how Burkardt cleverly used his body after receiving the ball and then deliberately pushed in: “A lot of strikers get hectic.” For his nine competitive goals, Burkardt only needed 23 shots, an average of 2.6 per goal. In Mainz last season there were four shots per goal – that was exceptionally efficient.
Not a striker for once object of speculation
The 25-year-old impressed after a short start-up time; the combination of enthusiasm and efficiency makes him so valuable. Unlike his predecessors Hugo Ekitiké, Omar Marmoush and Randal Kolo Muani, the Darmstadt native is not a speculative object that should be sold quickly. Many can imagine that the down-to-earth blonde will be made into the identification figure of Eintracht. The 22 million euro transfer to neighbors FSV Mainz 05 certainly seems to be well spent.
In a direct comparison, the Frankfurt player is currently doing better in the league than Dortmund’s Beier, who came from TSG Hoffenheim in the European Championship summer of 2024 for a whopping €28.5 million fee: With similar playing times (485 to 419 minutes), Burkardt has already scored six times, fired 17 shots on goal and provided five assists. Beier has two goals, eight shots on goal and four assists on goal.
The Dortmund player is a little faster
Its advantage is the slightly higher top speed of 34 km/h. Unlike Burkardt, the 23-year-old does not play in the front line – that’s where striker Serhou Guirassy has his regular place – but mostly runs on the left side. Their form could decide a sparkling cup constellation. “We are all aware that the cup has become more important again in recent years. It is very important. Every team wants to go to Berlin, and so do we. That’s why we definitely want to progress.”Dortmund coach Kovac confirmed Dortmund’s claim.
BVB’s last cup triumph so far came in 2021. Frankfurt last won the cup in 2018 – back then with Kovac on the sidelines. Both clubs are longing for their sixth success. “We want to progress a little further than in previous years, even if we had a cracker with Borussia Dortmund”said Frankfurt’s creator Krösche. The record speaks against the Hessians, who were only able to win one of the last eight Bundesliga games against the Westphalians. Furthermore, all four cup duels with the black and yellow team were lost this millennium.