Preview: Crunch clash against Freiburg | OneFootball

It’s eighth versus seventh on Matchday 24. A positive statistic against SC Freiburg and signs of a blossoming strike partnership offer Eintracht encouragement.

Backdrop

The narrow defeat at FC Bayern Munich, where the Eagles fought back from 3-0 down at half-time to pull it back to 3-2, earned the team praise from head coach Albert Riera, if not any points. “The performance after the break can give us a lift and more confidence,” he said afterwards. Board member for sport Markus Krösche added: “There are lots of matches left. At the weekend we play Freiburg, obviously a direct rival. We’re at home and want to win.”

Freiburg sit seventh in the table with 33 points, while Eintracht are in eighth place with 31 points after 23 matchdays. Therefore, victory would take Frankfurt above one of their immediate rivals in the battle for the European places. “When we execute our game, it can work well against any opponents,” explained Jonny Burkardt following his comeback in Munich.

Looking back

The recent history against Freiburg is also worth noting. Eintracht are unbeaten in their last seven Bundesliga meetings with the Breisgau club, which have produced three wins and a total of 13 points.

In fact, since the beginning of 2020, Frankfurt have only been beaten by Freiburg once. In the reverse fixture this season, the two sides shared the points in a 2-2 draw.

Jonny and Kali

It was Burkardt who scored both Eintracht goals in October 2025, registering his first brace with the eagle on his chest. Further braces followed in the next game against FC St. Pauli and against 1. FC Köln in November, before the striker suffered a calf injury. He returned to action against Bayern and scored the goal that made it 3-1.

Eintracht’s second goal was scored by Arnaud Kalimuendo, who like Burkardt came on in the 60th minute. “Both of them have very high individual quality, which you saw,” said Krösche. “That also gives a team assurance because you can play with a higher line. I think the two of them will work well together in the future.”  

Games against Freiburg have often gone well for Burkardt. The 25-year-old has found the net four times against Sunday’s opponents – only against VfL Bochum has he enjoyed more success in the Bundesliga (five goals). On that note…