Andre Silva at the double as Eintracht Frankfurt beat Hertha Berlin
Andre Silva pulled up to 16 goals for the season as Eintracht Frankfurt sealed a 3-1 win against a Hertha Berlin welcoming Pal Dardai back as head coach.
Eintracht Frankfurt 3-1 Hertha Berlin
Goals: 0-1 Piatek (66'), 1-1 Silva (67'), 2-1 Hinteregger (85'), 3-1 Silva (90'+5)
Hosts Frankfurt might have opened the scoring after 10 minutes had Filip Kostic's low drive across the face of goal been met by Silva and not Jordan Torunarigha, but Hertha gave as good as they got in the early exchanges and Krzysztof Piatek flashed an effort over from a tight angle at the other end moments later. Rune Jarstein, starting in goal ahead of Alexander Schwolow, was one of a number of changes new Hertha coach Dardai made from Bruno Labbadia's final game in charge - a 4-1 loss to Werder Bremen last Saturday - and the shot-stopper showed his worth midway through the half when he kept out Daichi Kamada from point-blank range. Jarstein then looked lively to keep a bottom corner-bound effort from Silva at bay, and Florian Badstübner's whistle for half-time went with the deadlock intact, thanks, largely, to the big Norwegian.
Dardai sent Maximilian Mittelstädt on for youngster Luca Netz at the start of the second half. He tried to find Piatek with a cross from the left soon after his introduction, but there was too much on his delivery for the Pole to connect. Piatek then bagged a deserved fifth goal of the season after being teed up in the box by Matheus Cunha, but Silva returned fire moments later, heading home Kostic's cross for 1-1. Piatek could have had a second, but thrashed his shot into the outside side-netting, and Hinteregger made the visitors pay for that profligacy when he headed home at the back post. Silva added gloss to the scoreline late on to seal a 4-1 win for Die Adler - their sixth from their last seven games, and one that lifts them into third.
Match stats
- Silva has scored seven goals in his last five Frankfurt games alone. With 16 from 19 games this season, the Portuguese has also claimed a Frankfurt club record.
- Kostic has produced one goal and four assists in four matches since countryman Luka Jovic returned to Frankfurt from Real Madrid. He had only assisted one in his previous 11 this term.
- Hinteregger opened his account for the season after 19 rounds of games. Last term, the Austria centre-back scored eight.
- Piatek drew level with the injured Jhon Cordoba on five goals for the season, one behind Cunha on a team-best six. Who will get the nod longer term under Dardai remains a point of interest.
- Hertha have won just two of their last 12 Bundesliga matches.
- The Old Lady remain joint-second in the league-wide standings for clean sheets (five).
Watch: Andre Silva: "I'm feeling amazing!"
Line-ups
Frankfurt: Trapp - Tuta, Hinteregger, N'Dicka - Barkok (Jovic 61'), Sow, Hasebe (c) (Rode 76'), Kostic - Kamada (Hrustic 82'), Younes (Toure 61') - Silva
Unused subs: Bördner, Ilsanker, Zuber, Chandler, Willems
Out: Durm (unconfirmed), Schubert (knock)
Coach: Adi Hütter
Hertha: Jarstein - Klünter, Stark (c), Torunarigha, Netz (Mittelstädt 46') - Tousart (Löwen 89'), Ascacibar (Darida 89'), Guendouzi (Ngankam 89') - Lukebakio (Leckie 77'), Piatek, Cunha
Unused subs: Schwolow, Pekarik, Alderete, M. Dardai
Out: Boyata (foot), Cordoba (unconfirmed), Dilrosun (knee), Plattenhart (unconfirmed)
Coach: Pal Dardai
Watch: Krzysztof Piatek: "We feel more positive"
Related news
5 reasons Germany will win Nations League
Germany have built on a good UEFA Euro 2024 campaign to go unbeaten in the Nations League so far, giving plenty of reason to hope they can win the tournament.
Ex-Bundesliga striker Szalai making recovery
Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann expressed concern for his former forward at Hoffenheim, Ádám Szalai, who suffered a medical emergency with Hungary.
Who is Christian Ilzer?
Boasting a superb record in Austrian football, Christian Ilzer is the man that Hoffenheim turned to following Pellegrino Matarazzo's departure. Who is Ilzer though and how has he landed in the Bundesliga?