The backdrop
The international break is followed for Eintracht Frankfurt by an away match at VfL Wolfsburg on Saturday at 15:30 CEST. Both teams have started the season with a defeat and a win, and are keen to double their points haul. The Wolves’ recent home record is patchy however, with just two wins in their last seven league encounters at the Volkswagen Arena. They lost the other five, conceding exactly three goals in every one.
Board member for sport Markus Krösche believes Eintracht are well equipped. “We have a good, deep squad with more quality than last season,” he said. In Mo Dahoud, the club have acquired a player who “will find his place” with his technical ability and press resistance, according to Krösche. Those qualities could prove useful against a Wolves side who are renowned for being uncompromising in their challenges, collecting nine bookings already this season.
Players in form
In attack, Omar Marmoush and Hugo Ekitiké have impressed as a flexible and in-tune duo in Dino Toppmöller’s team at the start of the campaign. “Omar and I complement each other well, I’m looking forward to playing together with him more,” Ekitiké said. Coach Toppmöller also highlighted Mario Götze, who “has had his moments in attack but also closed the gaps well at the back”.
Chaibi wants three points
The selection headache mentioned by Krösche is not made any easier by Farès Chaibi, who has not been able to take part in every training session since the start of the Bundesliga but is now making good progress. The Algerian attacker spoke in a press conference on Tuesday, saying: “the international break was short, we’ve trained well and also had an extended weekend. We’re determined to pick up three points at Wolfsburg and we’ll do everything we can over the coming days to prepare well for the game.”
