Eintracht Frankfurt prevail in seven-goal thriller against Wolfsburg
Eintracht Frankfurt came from behind to win a seven-goal thriller 4-3 against fellow UEFA Champions League-chasing Wolfsburg, with Andre Silva proving inspirational with a goal and assist for the Eagles.
Eintracht Frankfurt 4-3 Wolfsburg
Goals: 0-1 Baku (7'), 1-1 Kamada (8'), 2-1 Jovic (27'), 2-2 Weghorst (46'), 3-2 Silva (54'), 4-2 Durm (61'), 4-3 Philipp (85')
A fine save from Kevin Trapp denied Yannick Gerhardt just two minutes in, but there was little the last line of the Frankfurt defence could do to keep out Ridle Baku's curling effort, although he did get his fingertips to the ball before it nestled in the far corner. Frankfurt's reply was immediate with Sebastian Rode dummying Erik Durm's cutback to make room for Daichi Kamada to sweep the ball in from the edge of the area. Wolfsburg's lead had lasted just a minute, but Baku almost restored it with Trapp again called upon to make a save, although Wout Weghorst unwittingly exonerated the Frankfurt goalkeeper from having to make another difficult stop when he turned Maximilian Arnold's goal-bound corner wide before it reached the near post. Back at the other end, Silva pulled the ball back from the goal-line for Jovic to give Frankfurt the half-time lead with a shot that rifled inside Koen Casteels' near post.
There were just 36 seconds on the clock in the second half when Weghorst's deflected effort beat Trapp to bring the Wolves back on level terms, and Baku could and perhaps should have given them the lead with a shot he flashed wide of the far post. It was a costly miss as Frankfurt raced up the other end with Silva adding his name to the scoresheet, drilling Kamada's assist low past Casteels into the far corner. John Brooks came close to heading Wolfsburg level again from a corner as the chances kept on coming at both ends of the field, and unsurprisingly the sixth goal of the game soon followed. Silva turned Filip Kostic's pass against the post and Durm picked up the rebound before making space for a shot which just crept into the bottom corner. It provided a two-goal cushion the Eagles needed to take all three points, as Tuta inadvertently lobbed Trapp to set up a grandstand finish to a grandstand game, between two sides who both look set to light up the Champions League next season.
Match stats
- Baku now has six goals this season – already twice as many as he scored in two seasons with Mainz.
- Kamada's fifth of the season is also more than double his haul from two previous Bundesliga seasons (two goals).
- Jovic ended a nine-game drought with his fourth goal of the season, and he has now scored in three of his four games against Wolfsburg.
- Weghorst's 18th goal of the season is a new personal single-season best for the Dutchman, and the highest return for a Wolfsburg player since Edin Dzeko's 22 in their title-winning 2009/10 campaign.
- Weghorst has scored four times in six meetings with Frankfurt, including twice earlier this season.
- Only Bernd Hölzenbein (26 goals in 1976/77) has scored more Eintracht goals in a single season than Silva (23) this term, though no Frankfurt player ever had so many after 28 games.
- Die Adler (P13, W8, D6) are one of only three teams that remain unbeaten at home in the top-flight, alongside Bayern Munich and Wolfsburg.
Watch: Hütter: "We performed well again"
Line-ups
Frankfurt: Trapp - Tuta, Ilsanker, N'Dicka - Durm (Chandler 89'), Sow, Rode (c) (Hasebe 89'), Kostic - Kamada (Zuber 90'+2) - Silva, Jovic (Younes 83')
Unused subs: Schubert, Bördner, Hrustic,, Barkok, Willems
Out: Ache (hamstring), Hinteregger (thigh), Toure (pelvis)
Coach: Adi Hütter
Wolfsburg: Casteels (c) - Mbabu, Lacroix (Pongracic 66'), Brooks, Roussillon - Schlager (Ginczek 89'), Arnold - Baku, Gerhardt (Bialek 66'), Brekalo (Philipp 72') – Weghorst
Unused subs: Pervan, Kasten, Bruma,, Siersleben, Joao Victor
Out: Guilavogui (groin), Mehmedi (calf), Otavio (suspended), Steffen (ankle)
Coach: Oliver Glasner
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