Eintracht Frankfurt wants to get back to winning ways in the Conference League. However, the Hessians have to do without a central player.
The second matchday in the group phase of the Conference League is coming up: Eintracht Frankfurt will play at PAOK Saloniki in Greece on Thursday (9 p.m.).
- the initial situation
- The staff
- That’s what the coaches say
- These are the players to watch out for
- The statistics for the game
- How to follow the game
the initial situation
After the first defeat of the season Frankfurters want the feeling of victory back. That already happened in the Conference League on the first matchday against Aberdeen, even if the 2:1 was a tough piece of work two weeks ago. At least they managed to do something that the Toppmöller team had previously been denied in the Bundesliga: two goals of their own in one game.
Just like Eintracht, Saloniki also started the Conference League with a win: In Helsinki they scored 3-2 on the first matchday. Last Sunday they came very close to a win at Panathinaikos Athens, but had to swallow the equalizer in stoppage time. Second place after seven games in the domestic league is still more than decent.
Both teams are now eager for a successful European Cup evening. “We know that international games are always something very special. It might be a different kind of shine,” enthused Eintracht coach Dino Toppmöller.
The staff
After Mario Götze was one of the protagonists of the away defeat in Wolfsburg when he was sent off, he is now free: the midfielder is staying in Germany because of the impending birth of his child. Captain Sebastian Rode is also still missing due to injury. By the way: Lucas Alario and Philipp Max are not eligible to play in the Conference League, but they still flew to Greece to prepare for the next league game.
On the other hand, PAOK coach Razvan Lucescu has everything he can do, only midfielder Marcos Antonio has to miss with a muscle injury.
This is how Eintracht could play:
This is how Eintracht could play at PAOK
This is how Salonika could play: Kotarski – Kedziora, Troost-Ekong, Koulierakis, Baba – Schwab, Tsingaras – Zivkovic, Konstantelias, Taison – Brandon
That’s what the coaches say
Dino Toppmöller (Eintracht Frankfurt): “We expect an aggressive and strong opponent with a very good crowd behind us. It will be a hot dance. It will be an interesting encounter and we want to win the game.”
Razvan Lucescu (PAOK Salonika): You have to respect every opponent, but at the same time enter the field with self-confidence. We have to dominate the game, have the right mentality and take advantage of the opportunities.
These are the players to watch out for
New signing Willian Pacho has secured a regular place at Eintracht straight away and continues to receive praise for how well he does his job in the defensive chain. Coach Toppmöller also attributes this to the fact that he had a stable defensive structure in which he was able to quickly find his way. The young Ecuadorian will be able to present himself again on the European Cup stage against Saloniki. There will be quite a few eyes on him – after all, according to a media report, Eintracht estimates Pacho’s possible transfer value at 40 million euros.
Andrija Zivkovic is really shaking up opposing defenders this season. The winger has already scored four goals in the Greek league. There were also three in the Conference League qualification. So Eintracht has been warned. “It will be a challenge to defend these players,” said Toppmöller, referring to the Greeks’ wing power, in which Zivkovic currently plays a large part.
The statistics for the game
2-0 – that is the result when Eintracht and PAOK meet. Admittedly, this has only happened twice, in 1981 in the European Cup Winners’ Cup. At that time, the home team won the first and second leg, and in the end the Frankfurt team came out on top in the penalty shootout.
How to follow the game
hr-iNFO will broadcast the game live and in full length. You can also find the audio stream for the broadcast on hessenschau.de. The game will be shown on free TV on RTL.
