Götze on Kolo Muani: Thanks to this combination, Eintracht Frankfurt made it into the DFB Cup semi-finals. Union Berlin is a harmless guest.
An early brace from Randal Kolo Muani (9′, 11′) paved the way for Eintracht Frankfurt to a 2-0 (2-0) win in the DFB Cup quarter-finals against Union Berlin. Despite a dry spell of seven competitive games without a win, Frankfurt played dominantly from the start and this time also effectively. The Berliners, in third place in the Bundesliga, three places ahead of Eintracht, seemed unusually passive and harmless on Tuesday (April 4th, 2023).
“We played a great first half. In the second we managed too much”, Frankfurt coach Oliver Glasner said on ZDF: “The win is good for us.”
Götze and Kolo Muani in the leading roles
Bundesliga top scorer Kolo Muani started the game with a long-range shot (5th) – a grateful ball for Frankfurt goalkeeper Lennart Grill to get into the game. As in the 3-0 win against Stuttgart on Sunday, the 24-year-old was in the starting XI because first-choice goalkeeper Frederik Rönnow was again injured.
But the second shot from Frankfurt was already effective: Makoto Hasebe chipped the ball long into the penalty area, where Mario Götze volleyed it beautifully with the heel for Kolo Muani. The French striker scored from the left and was lucky because Grill was still there.
“It’s a lot of fun with Mario”
Only 93 seconds later the same players in the same roles: Götze prepares, Kolo Muani scores. This time, however, Grill helped negligently, making a harmless situation dangerous in the first place: Kolo Muani was quite wide after Götze’s strong, long pass and defender Robin Knoche ran with him. Nevertheless, Grill came far out of his goal – and was lupped over cold.
“It’s a lot of fun with Mario”, said Kolo Muani after the game about his double assist provider Götze: “He’s a remarkable player who has a lot of technical skills. You can only benefit from that as a team-mate.”
Good opportunities for Borré
The double strike made an impression, Union seemed inhibited and did not come dangerously in front of the Frankfurt goal. “We were unsure the whole first half and didn’t get access to the game,” said Berlin coach Urs Fischer.
Eintracht, on the other hand, almost went twice, but Rafael Borré was just offside (20′) and only hit the crossbar from close range (28′). So Union was still well served with the 0:2 break deficit.
Fischer tries a triple change
Fischer tried to liven up his team with a triple substitution. Morten Thorsby, Sven Michel and Paul Jaeckel replaced Paul Seguin, Janik Haberer and Diogo Leite. And indeed, Michel sent a first offensive sign of life with a long-range shot.
The Berliners now played at eye level, but Eintracht kept the game largely under control and didn’t allow any major chances for a long time. Goalkeeper Kevin Trapp only had to save in the 86th minute when substitute Jamie Leweling shot from close range.
Two possible penalties not given
Otherwise, the Eintracht defensive department, which has often been criticized recently, was safe and victory was not in danger despite a late phase of pressure from Berlin.
In the closing stages, Frankfurt was still unlucky as referee Bastian Dankert did not count a tackle by Josip Juranovic against Kolo Muani in the penalty area as a foul. On the other hand, Frankfurt’s Kristijan Jakic got the ball in his own 16 with a suspicion of a penalty, but Dankert allowed play to continue here as well.
Difficult away games in the Bundesliga
In the Bundesliga, both teams face demanding away tasks: Frankfurt play in Leverkusen, Union travels to Dortmund for the top game. Both games will take place on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
