Eintracht Frankfurt cannot take three leads at SC Freiburg over time

Knauff with double pack

Eintracht Frankfurt was in the lead three times and SC Freiburg came back three times. In the 3:3 (2:2) on Sunday, Michael Gregoritsch saved at least one point for the Breisgauers in the Bundesliga.

In the fight to qualify for the European Cup again, both teams are not really getting anywhere. The game was overshadowed by what was probably a serious knee injury to Frankfurt attacker Sasa Kalajdzic, who had to be substituted after eleven minutes and later returned to the bench on crutches. His representative Ansgar Knauff stepped into the breach in front of 34,700 spectators and scored twice (35th minute/72nd). In addition, Omar Marmoush (27th) gave Eintracht a 1-0 lead. Freiburg equalized three times through Ritsu Doan (29th) and Vincenzo Grifo with a penalty kick and finally Gregoritsch (89th) and prevented their fourth league defeat in a row.

The game had to be interrupted several times due to fan protests against the possible entry of an investor into the German Football League. After the break, remote-controlled aircraft even sailed over the field. While Eintracht maintained sixth place and is still on course for the European Cup, the sports club has to stretch significantly more. With 29 points, Freiburg are currently eighth. Like Eintracht, who drew 2-2 at Royale Union Saint-Gilloise in the Conference League, the Breisgauers were also in action on Thursday. They drew goalless away from RC Lens in the Europa League.

Unlike many other stadiums, there were only two short interruptions in the first half in Freiburg. The game had not yet gotten going at this early stage – and that would take some time. The treatment break for Kalajdzic, who went down without any external influence, also took time. Even after that, neither team initially found any solutions. It was only a positioning error by Yannik Keitel, who, like in Lens, played in the center of defense and had led his teammates there so well, that caused danger – and how: Since Keitel also slipped away, Marmoush had an easy time on the way to the lead.

The hosts shook each other briefly and then applied more pressure. National goalkeeper Kevin Trapp was able to defuse a shot from Roland Sallai. However, he defended right at Doan’s feet – 1:1. It was the first goal from the game for Freiburg this calendar year, after they had often lacked penetration recently. With the exception of the goals, most of the action took place in midfield. “It is unpleasant for every Bundesliga team to play against Freiburg,” Frankfurt coach Dino Toppmöller announced. Nevertheless, the coach was able to celebrate again after a successful counterattack by Knauff. This time, coach Christian Streich’s team didn’t react well. However, the guests did not go into the dressing room with a lead because Makoto Hasebe unfortunately stepped on the foot of his opponent Lucas Höler in the penalty area. Grifo converted the penalty.

Shortly after the restart, the next protest action: In addition to the sweets thrown from the SC block, airplanes also flew over the lawn, so referee Tobias Stieler sent the teams to the dressing rooms for a few minutes. The renewed interruption didn’t do the game any good. Nevertheless, Eintracht had the better opportunities and were rewarded by Knauff. The Kalajdzic substitute flicked the ball into the corner. For the fourth time in a row, SC conceded three goals in a league game. In a wild final phase, Michael Gregoritsch saved a point for the hosts.

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