Eintracht Frankfurt are one of five teams with a chance of overtaking Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga title race this season.
The Eagles are fifth in the standings ahead of round 20 and have amassed 35 points this season. Oliver Glasner’s team is just five points off Bayern Munich and could close the gap with a win and the league leaders dropping points.
This season’s Bundesliga title race is the most exciting in years with so many teams still in the battle for the championship. While Eintracht Frankfurt are in the title fight, FC Koln are not.
The Billy Goats will start round 22 in 11th place and seven points above the bottom three. FC Koln are on a four-game unbeaten streak ahead of Frankfurt’s arrival. Three consecutive Koln games in the league ended as draws.
Due to their three straight draws, Koln picked up just six points from the last six games in the league. They scored nine goals and conceded six times to their last six opponents.
Eintracht Frankfurt were unbeaten in their last six games, as they took 12 points from those matches. Frankfurt are currently third in the Bundesliga form table. The Eagles outscored their last six opponents 13-5.
Glasner will be without midfielder Jesper Lindstrom for the match. The midfielder won’t return until March and will miss Frankfurt’s first leg Champions League last-16 tie with Napoli. Back-up goalie Jens Grahl could return from illness and midfielder Eric Ebimbe is out with an ankle sprain.
Koln coach Steffan Baumgart has a long list of players in the treatment room. Kristian Pederson, Luca Kilian, Mark Uth, Florian Dietz, and Sebastian Andersson are all ruled out through injury. Dejan Ljubicic could return following an illness and Davie Selke may play following a knock.
Four of the last six games between FC Koln and Eintracht Frankfurt ended as draws. The teams’ reverse Bundesliga fixture ended 1-1 in August. Frankfurt’s Daichi Kamada scored in the 71st minute, but the goal was cancelled out by Koln’s Jan Thielmann with eight minutes left to play.