Twitter-RB Leipzig
Eintracht Frankfurt will be playing hosts to Red Bull Leipzig for the third round of the DFB Cup. Frankfurt won the competition a year and a half ago when they beat Bayern Munich by 3-1 in the finals, but was knocked out in the very first round of the campaign last season. However, Frankfurt will be looking to go the distance this time around and will be high in confidence in front of home support as they beat Leipzig 2-0 the last time they met in the Bundesliga.
Julian Nagelsmann’s Leipzig side has impressed a lot this season as they stayed on top of the German League till a 2-2 draw against Monchengladbach made them slip to second while being a point behind Bayern Munich. Considering Leipzig’s form in the ongoing season, Nagelsman’s men are very much capable of being tagged as the favourites of the cup competition.
Match Details
Date- Tuesday, February 4
Kick-Off- 11:00 PM (IST)
Venue- Commerzbank-Arena
Frankfurt
Fernandes is out due to a hip injury, while Russ’ Achilles tendon and Torro’s thigh issue keeps them on the sidelines for the upcoming fixture. Gacinovic and Dost are also in doubts of starting for the hosts. Having said that, Toure, Hasebe, Hinteregger and Durm should start as the back four. Kohr, Rode, Kostic should be accommodating midfield, while Kamada and Paciencia feature in the advanced role.
Red Bull Leipzig
Kampl’s ankle, Konate’s hamstring and Orban’s knee injury rule them out of the upcoming cup game. Timo Wener will once again be the central figure in attack, Schick and Olmo should feature in the advanced positions, while, Nkunku, Laimer and the skipper Sabitzer could be made available more centrally. With Mvogo to keep between the sticks, Mukiele, Upamecano and Halstenberg should formulate the defence.
FRK (Expected Playing 11)-Trapp – Toure, Hasebe (c), Hinteregger, Durm – Chandler, Kohr, Rode, Kostic – Kamada – Paciencia
LEP (Expected Playing 11)-Mvogo – Mukiele, Upamecano, Halstenberg – Adams, Sabitzer (c), Laimer, Nkunku – Olmo, Werner – Schick
Goncalo Paciencia will be pivotal in the forward line for Frankfurt. Paciencia has seven goals, two assists and a pass accuracy of 65.8% from 1148 minutes in the Bundesliga this season.
Timo Wener has been in sublime form for Red Bull Leipzig on the attack. The German international has 20 goals, six assists and a pass accuracy of 77.3% from 20 appearances in the league this season.
Filip Kostic has been essential in the midfield position for Frankfurt. The Croatian has two goals, six assists and a pass accuracy of 64.5% from 1699 minutes in the league this season.
Christopher Nkunku has been one of the standouts for Leipzig in the advanced role. The 22-year-old has four goals, seven assists and a pass accuracy of 85.7% from 19 appearances in the German League this season.
It’s even stevens between the two sides in terms of the last six encounters. Frankfurt has won two, Leipzig has won two and two games have ended on level terms.
Though Red Bull Leipzig hasn’t won at the Commerzbank-Arena in the last three meetings, Nagelsman has enough quality in the locker to bag the win.
Goalkeeper- Y Mvogo
Defenders- A Toure, M Hasebe, N Mukiele
Midfielders- F Kostic, S Rode, C Nkunku, K Laimer, T Adams
Forwards- T Werner (C), G Paciencia (VC)
Goalkeeper- Y Mvogo
Defenders- A Toure, M Hasebe, M Hinteregger, N Mukiele
Midfielders- D Olmo, K Laimer, M Sabitzer (VC), T Chandler
Forwards- G Paciencia (C), P Schick
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