16th matchday
Eintracht celebrates a late win against Gladbach
Frankfurt Eintracht turned the game around against Mönchengladbach and won 2-1. photo
© Arne Dedert/dpa
With two very late goals, Eintracht Frankfurt managed to say a happy farewell to the short winter break. The Hessians celebrate wildly – the result is bitter for Gladbach.
In front of 58,000 spectators, Maximilian Wöber (27th minute) initially took the lead for the Lower Rhine club. But in a turbulent final phase, the defender initially saw a yellow-red card (88th), and a little later the Frankfurt team were able to celebrate.
The first half initially remained almost uneventful. Only a shot from Eintracht defender William Pacho (22nd) from the edge of the penalty area over the goal caused some excitement. It wasn’t until the visitors’ lead goal five minutes later that the game picked up speed. After a corner kick from Franck Honorat, the criminally unmarked Wöber was able to head into the bottom left corner.
Gladbach initially dominant
Afterwards, the Gladbachers dominated, acting more consistently in the duels and not revealing large gaps in the defense for a long time – as in many previous encounters. Borussia arrived with 33 goals conceded, only Darmstadt 98 (41) have conceded more so far. In the 34th minute it was left-back Wöber who caused danger again. Eintracht goalkeeper Kevin Trapp was able to deflect his deflected shot around the right post with a save in his 250th Bundesliga game for the Hessians.
For a long time in the 27th competitive game this season, the Frankfurt professionals clearly lacked the energy to rebel. Coach Dino Toppmöller said before kick-off that one or two of them were playing “on the last groove”. The few successes and the elimination from the DFB Cup probably did anything but strengthen the self-confidence.
After the restart, the hosts tried to mobilize their last reserves, but often wasted the ball in midfield. In the 55th minute, Farés Chaibi took heart and broke through on the left side, but failed with a low shot past Gladbach goalkeeper Moritz Nicolas, who made a brilliant save. However, striker Omar Marmoush, who returned after an illness and a yellow card suspension, was unable to make a significant impact and had no significant chance.
After Gladbach’s Wöber was sent off, Frankfurt went all out on attack – and still managed to turn the game around. Buta capitalized on Niels Nkounkou’s cross with a well-considered header. Koch’s even later goal caused loud cheers in the Frankfurt Arena.