RB Leipzig denied by stubborn Eintracht Frankfurt in goalless draw
Christopher Nkunku and RB Leipzig came up against an inspired Kevin Trapp as Eintracht Frankfurt took a point from a 0-0 draw at the Red Bull Arena on Sunday.
It took the red-hot Nkunku just nine minutes to have his first effort on goal but Trapp was thankful to see the Frenchman's effort deflected over the Frankfurt crossbar and to safety. Leipzig defender Mohamed Simakan hit the post and Konrad Laimer would go on to rattle the visitors' crossbar while, at the other end, Jesper Lindstrom twice fluffed his lines when through on goal and looking to pass across goal when the shot was the better option. Nkunku did have the ball in the back of the net shortly before the break but he was denied a 16th goal of the season by the offside flag as the scores remained level at the interval.
When the two teams emerged for the second half, Leipzig were immediately on the attack, with Nkunku and Dani Olmo almost combining to give their side the lead but the Spaniard was forced away from goal and to safety. It then took a wonderful one handed save from Trapp to deny Laimer from close range shortly after the hour mark as Die Adler held firm against their probing hosts. The Frankfurt 'keeper then denied Nkunku from the edge of the box with 13 minutes remaining in what was an excellent performance from the 31-year-old Germany international. Trapp then stayed on his feet as substitute Yussuf Poulsen looked certain to open the scoring but the Dane couldn't find a way past the stubborn visiting goalie.
Match stats
- Leipzig are unbeaten in home league games against Frankfurt (W3, D3).
- Nkunku wasn't on the scoresheet for only the third time in 2022. He has scored in eight of Leipzig's 10 Bundesliga fixtures since the New Year.
- Andre Silva - who scored 40 of his 50 Bundesliga goals for Leipzig - has never scored against Leipzig or Eintracht and they are the only teams in the top tier that he's not found the net against.
- Borre and Lindstrom are Eintracht’s top two Bundesliga scorers this season, with seven and five goals respectively. However, both players have only scored once across the Rückrunde - in the 4-1 win at Hertha Berlin on Matchday 25.
- Second-half Frankfurt sub Stefan Ilsanker made 131 appearances for Leipzig and won promotion to the Bundesliga with Die Roten Bullen in 2016.
- The away team has never won a Bundesliga meeting between Leipzig and Frankfurt (five home wins, seven draws).
Watch: Henrichs: "We're the best team of the second half of the season"
Line-ups
Leipzig: Gulacsi (c) - Simakan, Orban, Gvardiol - Henrichs, Laimer (Haidara 84'), Kampl (Forsberg 60'), Angelino - Olmo (Szoboszlai 84') - Silva (Poulsen 72'), Nkunku
Unused subs: Martinez, Adams, Mukiele, Halstenberg, Novoa
Out: Klostermann (muscular), Tschauner (cold)
Coach: Domenico Tedesco
Frankfurt: Trapp - Tuta, Hinteregger, N'Dicka - Knauff (Lenz 80'), Jakic, Rode (c) (Hrustic 46'), Kostic - Lindstrom (Hauge 66'), Kamada (Ilsanker 89') - Borre (Lammers 89')
Unused subs: Grahl, Hasebe, Chandler, Paciencia
Out: Ache (hamstring), Ramaj (knee), Sow (suspended)
Coach: Oliver Glasner
Watch: Trapp: "We've been improving"
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