Preview: Visit to Cologne

Backdrop: roles clearly assigned

With the 1-0 win at home to Mainz, Eintracht consolidated their position in sixth and moved to within two points of fifth place. “We’ve taken 10 points from the last four matches,” summarised head coach Dino Toppmöller after last Friday’s match. “As far as the points tally is concerned, we’re on a really good path.”

Going back a little further, the Eagles are actually in the top three in the Bundesliga form table having lost just one of their last six league games and collected 13 points. Only Bayer Leverkusen (14) and Bayern Munich (15) have picked up more in the same period.

Thirteen points is one more than upcoming opponents Köln have registered all season. The Billy Goats are winless in six matches and are right in the thick of the relegation battle in 16th place.

Good chance conversion

Another positive for Frankfurt is their chance conversion, which at 20 percent is the joint best in the league with Bayern. They also boast the second-best conversion rate when it comes to big chances with 49 percent. After Africa Cup of Nations participants Ellyes Skhiri and Farès Chaibi returned to the squad against Mainz, Omar Marmoush is also expected back from Ivory Coast imminently. The Egyptian is the Eagles’ leading scorer this season with 12 goals in all competitions.

Talking of 12, Köln have the weakest attack in the current Bundesliga campaign with this exact number of goals. Only once in the club’s history has their goals for column been lower at this stage in the season.

Switched sides

The last time Eintracht made the trip to the cathedral city, on Matchday 20 of the 2022/23 season, two of Köln’s goals were scored by a player who now wears the eagle on his chest rather than the billy goat: Ellyes Skhiri. Conversely, Faride Alidou is currently on loan at Köln from Frankfurt and scored his first goal in his 27th Bundesliga appearance overall in the 1-1 draw at Wolfsburg last weekend.