This past matchday, a team that has been overlooked by
almost everyone produced perhaps the most impressive result of the week.
Though this team has gone unnoticed by many, when one
takes a closer look, it should become obvious that not only is this team better
than they’re given credit for, but they should arguably be doing even better
than they are right now.
The club I am speaking about is Eintracht Frankfurt.
Frankfurt held Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund to a
1-1 draw. Luka Jović’s 36th-minute goal cancelled out Dortmund icon Marco
Reus’s opener. The equaliser was the Serbian’s 14th goal in the Bundesliga this
season.
For those who have been paying close attention,
Frankfurt’s solid season thus far will not have come as a surprise. In fact, it
could easily be argued that they should be doing better in the league. Die
Adler are currently fifth in the Bundesliga, five points off a Champions League
spot. However, where Frankfurt have truly shone this season has been in the
Europa League. They won all six games in a tough group that included Marseille
and Lazio. Frankfurt will play against Shakhtar Donetsk in the round of 32, and
they should have no trouble in knocking the Ukrainian club out of the
tournament.
Although Frankfurt do not have any superstars on their
roster, what they do have is a collection of very solid contributors who are
mostly underrated to some degree. Players such as Kevin Trapp, Makoto Hasebe,
Gelson Fernandes, Jonathan de Guzmán, Filip Kostić, Jović, and Sébastien Haller
have all played major roles in Frankfurt’s season thus far. As is the case with
many teams who achieve success without a star player, this is an instance of all
the pieces fitting together perfectly.
This may not be the case for much longer, though. This
also brings up another important point.
When I say that “this may not be the case for much
longer”, I don’t mean that the players will no longer be a good fit for the
team.
I mean that Frankfurt have a budding star among them in
Jović. At just 21 years old, Jović is having a breakout season. The Benfica
loanee is currently the Bundesliga’s leading goalscorer. If he remains in this
position at the end of the season, he will become the youngest player to ever
lead the Bundesliga in goals scored. What makes this even more impressive is
the fact that if he were to do so, he would eclipse the legendary Gerd Müller
for the honour. Jović would also become the youngest player to be the top
scorer of a major European league since Ronaldo in 1997.
No one could have foreseen Jović’s becoming one of the
most exciting young prospects in world football. At the beginning of this
season, he had only played in 84 career league games, scoring 24 goals. Reduce
the criteria to just matches played in a major league, and the numbers fall to
22 and eight respectively.
Although it is likely that Jović will eventually sign for
a bigger club at some point in the future, Frankfurt should definitely build
the team around him while he is still at the Commerzbank-Arena.
However, there is one area in which Frankfurt clearly
have significant room for improvement: their defense.
Frankfurt have already conceded 27 goals after just 20
league games this season, and their backline consisting of the likes of Evan
N’Dicka, David Abraham, and Danny da Costa is nowhere near the quality required
to take the club to the next level.
That being said, Frankfurt did sign three defenders
during the recent transfer window – Martin Hinteregger, Tuta, and Almamy Touré
– though their impact on the team remains to be seen. Nevertheless, Hinteregger
is better than any of the other defenders on Frankfurt’s roster and should
therefore be able to help turn things around at the back.
As has been mentioned, this team is certainly underrated.
They are currently on pace to have their best Bundesliga campaign since 1994.
What’s more, if they finish the season in the top four, they will be in the
Champions League for the first time since 1960 and the first time in the
modern era.
Evidently, Eintracht Frankfurt cannot and should not be
overlooked anymore.
No comments:
Post a Comment