Werder Bremen vs Eintracht Frankfurt preview: Friday night lights return to the Weserstadion | OneFootball

Werder Bremen

Things are on the verge of completely falling apart for Werder Bremen.

They went into the winter break in poor form, with their last win coming on November 7th. That spell saw Bremen only pick up two points in five games, and they slid down the Bundesliga table. Not only were there concerns about the team, but there were real worries about new manager Horst Steffen.

Werder had a lucky break to begin the second-season. Scheduled to host the high-flying Hoffenheim in a contest they had little chance of success in, the match was instead called off due to snowfall in the city.

This delayed their return until Tuesday, but fans of the Green-Whites probably wish that contest was cancelled too. A trip to the Westfalenstadion to take on 2nd-place Borussia Dortmund proved too much to handle, and they ultimately fell 3-0 in another frustrating showing.

Bremen looked bright early on, but wastefulness in front of goal cost them when they conceded an easy corner 11 minutes in. The opposition took control of proceedings following the half-time break, and got their precious second-goal via an excellent Marcel Sabitzer finish. A late defensive turnover led to a dagger of a third to end things.

It was more of the same as of late from Werder. Some attacking moves looked promising, and they passed the ball well, but when they got to the final third they let themselves down over and over again. Simple mistakes at the back also did them in, and you’re never going to get a result doing the things they were near their own goal.

Steffen is very much on the hot seat, and things aren’t going to get any easier. Die Werderaner are finally back home, but they’re up against an Eintracht Frankfurt side that scored four on them in the reverse fixture.

Something has to change, and if it’s not the performances, it might be the head coach.

Team news

Bremen are still without a number of defenders, including Mitchell Weiser, Felix Agu, Maximilian Wöber, and Niklas Stark, while forward Victor Boniface might miss the rest of the year.

Predicted lineups

Backhaus, Sugawara, Pieper, Friedl, Coulibaly, Deman, Lynen, Stage, Mbangula, Schmid, Njinmah

Eintracht Frankfurt

Eintracht Frankfurt began the campaign looking like real threats at the top of the table, but now they find themselves on the brink of missing European football entirely.

They were comprehensively cast aside by RB Leipzig to start the month of December, losing 6-0 only a few weeks after falling 3-0 to Atalanta at home in Champions League action. The Eagles rebounded shortly after to save some face going into the new year.

Things have been eventful since Frankfurt returned to the field. They opened the new slate by hosting Borussia Dortmund, and the two put on a classic, drawing 3-3 with each side grabbing a goal in stoppage time.

Frankfurt’s next contest had one less goal, but unfortunately for them that lack of a sixth meant that they lost to VfB Stuttgart. They opened the scoring on the night, but then gave up two straight. Just when it seemed like they had done enough for another tie, they conceded with five minutes to go.

That’s been the story of Eintracht’s season. Loaded with attacking talent, they can score goals in numerous different ways and via several different players. They’re quick, explosive, and lethal when all is going well.

Defensively, however, they’re a mess. The Eagles have conceded 36 goals in the league, which is only two less than last-place FC Heidenheim. They keep giving up space in the final third, and goalkeeper Kaua has struggled since reclaiming a spot in the starting lineup.

The onus will be on Frankfurt on this night. They’re the better team, they’re higher up in the standings, and they easily won the previous encounter. However, they also know that if they don’t come out to play, then they’ll likely be forced to pay for it.

Team news

Eintracht are going through a mini injury crisis, with Elias Baum, Mario Götze, Younes Ebnoutalib, Jonathan Burkardt, and Michy Batshuayi all unavailable for this contest.

Predicted lineups

Zetterer, Collins, Koch, Theate, Kristensen, Amiri, Skhiri, Brown, Uzun, Kalimuendo-Muinga, Doan