Borussia Dortmund vs. Eintracht Frankfurt preview: Visitors out to keep European hopes alive | OneFootball

Borussia Dortmund:

In the penultimate round of Bundesliga games before the 2025-26 season comes to it's end, Borussia Dortmund take on Eintracht Frankfurt on Matchday 33. The Friday night fixture at a floodlit and atmospheric Westfalenstadion will kick-off at 20:30 CET.

While the mood may not be great around Dortmund at the minute, the hosts will be eager to finish their final home fixture on a high. Last weekend's late 1-0 loss to Borussia Mönchengladbach made it a third defeat in four games for the Ruhrpott side. 

Perhaps what's more concerning from BVB's point of view is the lack of urgency. Niko Kovač's side only managed six shots with a solitary effort on target at Borussia Park. Although it could be argued that Dortmund have little left to play for aside from pride. 

Perhaps this final home game is somewhat fitting, taking on another out-of-sorts team in Frankfurt. Their off-field troubles should give Dortmund confidence against a side who they have beaten 13 times from their last 15 games against the Hessen club on home soil.

Team news:

Once again, Emre Can (ACL tear) is out, while Ramy Bensebaini's (ankle) season also appears to be over. Both of Niklas Süle and Felix Nmecha could also miss out due to fitness issues after injury, but they could feature if that status changes in time. 

Predicted lineup: Kobel – Reggiani, Anton, Schlotterbeck – Ryerson, Sabitzer, Bellingham, Svensson – Beier, Brandt – Guirassy

Eintracht Frankfurt:

Friday evening's visitors, Eintracht Frankfurt, role into North-Rhine Westphalia in a similarly bad vein of form. With just a solitary win, a pair of draws and three defeats in their last six outings, the Hessen club are truly stumbling towards the finishing line. 

Last Saturday proved to be another difficult afternoon – despite taking the lead, Albert Riera's side slipped to a 2-1 defeat at home to Hamburger SV. That result, coupled with a draw for SC Freiburg, means they have lost control of the Conference League spot. 

In many ways, it's a perk to have something to play for. If Riera – despite talks of his demise already growing – can galvanise the group, an upset in Dortmund is possible. They only trail seventh-place Freiburg by a solitary point and could still squeeze into Europe again.

The difficulty comes in taking on BVB on their home patch – as previously mentioned, not a happy hunting ground for Frankfurt. In their Bundesliga history, the Hessen outfit has only claimed 6 wins and 5 draws in their 45 visits to north-west to face the Yellow and Blacks. 

Team news:

Former Dortmund players Michi Batshuayi (fitness) and Nnamdi Collins (ankle) are unlikely to feature. Jens Grahl (hamstring) is no big loss as third-choice goalkeeper, but Rasmus Kristensen will serve a suspension for his red card against HSV. 

Predicted lineup: Zetterer – Amenda, Koch, Theate, Brown – Larsson, Højlund – Dōan, Uzun, Bahoya – Kalimuendo