The 2-0 reverse at the Borussia Park meant the Hessen outfit lie four points off a possible continental spot in ninth.
Skibbe: "We were chasing the game"
Coach Michael Skibbe was critical of the performance, which was all the more difficult to swallow with all their closest competitors from places fifth to tenth picking up wins.
"What we delivered out there was beneath contempt," said a scathing Halil Altintop. Indeed, the margin of defeat could have been far greater but for a number of wasted Gladbach opportunities. "It's the first time in a while that we've had to chase the game," said Skibbe. "We could easily have lost by more than just 2-0 based on the amount of chances they had."
After three consecutive wins, including a 2-1 victory over league leaders Bayern München and a 3-2 success against high flying Leverkusen, the Eagles were brought back down to earth with a thud. "We keep missing out on critical points every time we start to climb the table," said Benjamin Köhler.
Dropping points against "lesser" teams
Though Frankfurt have generally fared well against the big boys, they have struggled to conquer the so called "lesser" clubs, such as 1. FC Köln, Hannover 96 and now Mönchengladbach. "We've tried to beat teams just by playing good football, but we're not stable enough to do that," said chairman of the board Heribert Bruchhagen.
Still, there can be no doubt that the Hessen have come on leaps and bounds from the side which narrowly avoided relegation last term, becoming a team capable of producing their best finish in ten years.
And the fight for sixth place, which should now guarantee European qualification, is far from over: "We haven't lost our confidence," said defender Marco Russ. "We're aiming for sixth place. The season is far from over and it would be a shame if we were to give up now when there are still four games to go."
Conceding too many early goals
If Frankfurt are to secure a European berth, they will likely need to take maximum points from their final four games against Hertha BSC, 1. FSV Mainz 05, 1899 Hoffenheim and VfL Wolfsburg. Key to that will be their ability to stop conceding the early goals which have punctuated their season.
"We've conceded 13 or 14 goals in the opening quarter of an hour of matches this term," continued Köhler. "That can't be allowed to happen. We can't turn games around like we did against Bayern and Leverkusen all the time."
This weekend, Frankfurt are up against their former coach in the form of Friedhelm Funkel and Hertha BSC. The capital club remain bottom of the table, but have been in excellent form away from home since Christmas and will no doubt provide a stern test for Eintracht in their quest for the glamour of European competition.
Tobias Gonscherowski/Adaptation: Andy James
