Can Eintracht Frankfurt play in the Europa League round of 16 against FC Basel both at home and in the second leg at home? What sounds completely crazy at first is in the realm of the possible in times of the corona virus.
This Thursday, both clubs will meet in the regular way for the first leg in the Commerzbank-Arena in Frankfurt. No restrictions are currently expected for the first duel. However, the cantonal police in Basel-City, together with the crisis team, declared the return leg in Basel, scheduled for March 19, a few days before the first leg to be impossible.
When and where the second duel between Frankfurt and Basel can be held is still in the stars at the present time. According to those responsible for Eintracht, it would be an option for both clubs to play against each other twice in Frankfurt.
The betting base also expects Hessia to be strong at home and always fierce, especially in the European Cup, and thus bets against Frankfurt in the first leg. FC Basel their tip on a home win.
Frankfurt:
Due to constant ups and downs in its club history, the Frankfurt Eintracht long ago received the nickname “moody diva”. The Hessians live up to this nickname again this season. In the Europa League and DFB Cup, the eagles show what they can really do. From the second qualification round, Coach Adi Hütter’s men had to play in the European Cup, for example.
With four wins and only one defeat in Strasbourg, Eintracht moved into the EL group phase for the second time in a row. The SBU landed there with three wins and three defeats in second place behind Arsenal London, but ahead of Standard Liège and Vitoria Guimaraes. In the intermediate round, the diva then moved into the round of 16 with a 4: 1 and a 2: 2 against RB Salzburg.
Frankfurt also performed well in the cup and are in the semi-finals where you have to compete at Bayern Munich on April 21. But in the league, the Hütter-Elf is not running smoothly. After 24 games, Eintracht is in 12th place with 28 points. The first European Cup place is already nine points away. In contrast, relegation place 16 is only six points ahead.
For the rest of the season, it seems that players and managers have already said goodbye to the Europa League. Defender Martin Hinteregger also said after the bitter 0: 4 defeat at Bayer Leverkusen last Saturday: “The league is all about staying in the league.”
So the SBU almost always ran after the ball. In addition, the defensive was hit hard by precise passes in depth. In the duels, Eintracht was too slow, too little consistent and too weak.
The Frankfurt team found no antidote to Bayer’s variable offensive game. Against the attentive defense of the hosts, the eagles could also pose no danger on the offensive.
But the European Cup is coming up again on Thursday. Here the Hessians want to throw their home strength into the ring again. While Frankfurt is the weakest away team in the league with only seven points, the team is in a good sixth place in the home table with 21 points. This good home booty naturally supports the game Frankfurt vs. FC Basel made a prediction on the home side.
The operations of Bas Dost, Lucas Torro and Marco Russ against FC Basel are questionable. Otherwise the hospital is currently completely empty.
FC Basel:
At the beginning of March, the Swiss Football League (SFL) canceled all games in the 1st and 2nd Swiss leagues until the weekend of 4th and 5th April. FC Basel, among other things, is now suffering from this rejection, as the last international representative to hold the flag of the Swiss team in the Europa League. If the Bebbi go into the game against Eintracht this Thursday, they have a long forced break behind them.
The last competitive game was played on February 27th. With a 1-0 home win against APOEL, FCB easily moved into the round of 16 after a 3-0 away win in the first leg. The last league game was played by coach Marcel Koller’s men on February 23. Here at home there was a 2: 2 against promoted Servette Geneva. With the compulsory break it has of course become a bit calmer at FC Basel.
After four defeats in five league games, coach Koller was heavily criticized. The coach was supposed to bring the Bebbi closer to Master Young Boys Bern this season. At times it even succeeded. After the 17th matchday, the Basler were only one point behind YB as second in the table. But after a negative series with four losses in five league games, FCB is now five points behind in first place.
In addition, you had to not only let Bern take the lead in the table, but also FC St. Gallen, who is currently the new main competitor for the young boys in the battle for the championship. So far, Koller has probably only been able to save his job through convincing performances in the Europa League. Here the club was the first in Group C to get ahead of Getafe, Krasnodar and Trabzonspor.
Against APOEL Nicosia, the Bebbi confidently entered the next round. The coach, whose contract expires in the summer anyway, may not afford many more losses. At the weekend, the club used the non-play time for two friendly games in private and won twice, 5-0 and 1-0, against second division FC Schaffhausen.
Despite the long competitive break, FC Basel still has numerous injuries to complain about with Kevin Bua, Luca Zuffi, Ricky van Wolfswinkel, Zdravko Kuzmanovic and Jasper van der Werff. Alderete is available again after his European Cup suspension.
