Unbeaten since losing two-nil in the SuperCup to Borussia Dortmund in August, Bayern Munich lead the Bundesliga with 24 points through 10 matchdays. Their opponent this weekend is Eintracht Frankfurt, 12th in the table with 12 points.
Eintracht Frankfurt vs. Bayern Munich: Time, TV schedule and game preview
League leaders Bayern Munich travel to Frankfurt to face 12th place Eintracht on Saturday in the Bundesliga.
Lennart Preiss
Last week, Bayern were held to a goalless draw at home by Borussia Mönchengladbach. Manuel Neuer put in a man of the match performance, twice making saves when it was just him against two attackers. Other than that draw, Pep Guardiola's side has won every game since September 20.
Even at home, Thomas Schaff’s side is a 10-1 underdog with the bookmakers. That might not come as a surprise, as Die Adler have lost three straight in the league, and because Bayern are playing incredible football and look generally unbeatable.
After the draw last weekend in the league, Bayern will be looking for the win. That being said, they are short staffed at striker and may try something experimental up top if Robert Lewandowski is rested. The key battle will come on the flanks. If Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery start, they will cause problems for the Frankfurt fullbacks. Timothy Chandler looks likely to start on the right, and it will be either David Kinsobi or Bastian Oczipka at left back. Alexander Meier has six goals so far in nine appearances for Frankfurt in the league this season.
Eintracht Frankfurt injuries and suspensions:
Out: Carlos Zambrano (knee), Kevin Trapp (ankle), Lucas Waldschmidt (groin), Nelson Valdez (knee), Constant Djakpa (knee) Haris Seferović (suspended).
Bayern Munich injuries and suspensions
Out: David Alaba (knee), Bastian Schweinsteiger (tonsils), Thiago Alcântara (knee), Holger Badstuber (thigh), Claudio Pizarro (thigh), Javi Martinez (knee).
Both teams are devastated by injuries, but Frankfurt are arguably off worse. Goalkeeper Kevin Trapp is also the captain, so having him out hurts twice as much. Losing Haris Seferović to suspension after the Swiss was sent off in the four to five thriller that Eintracht lost to VfB Stuttgart two weeks ago hurts, and it means that someone else will have to play up top. They have shown they can score goals though, and are tied for joint-third most goals in the league, with 17. Strangely enough (or maybe not), they also are third most in the goals conceded department, with 19.
Austrian all-purpose man David Alaba suffered a knee injury that will require surgery in the recent 2-0 win over A.S. Roma in the Champions League this past week. He’s just the latest Bayern player to go down, but the loss of the versatility he brings the squad could throw off Pep’s tactics completely. He’s going to be out until at least the Winterpause, but it looks like Bastian Schweinsteiger is getting closer to a return.
Projected lineups:
Eintracht Frankfurt: Felix Wiedwald, David Kinsobi, Timothy Chandler, Marco Russ, Alexander Madlung, Slobodan Medojević, Makato Hasebe, Lucas Piazon, Stefan Aigner, Alexander Meier.
Bayern Munich: Manuel Neuer, Jerôme Boateng, Mehdi Benatia, Philipp Lahm, Juan Bernat, Rafinha, Xabi Alonso, Thomas Müller, Franck Ribery, Xherdan Shaqiri, Arjen Robben.
Match Date/Time: 3:30 p.m. local, 9:30 a.m. ET
Venue: Commerzbank-Arena, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
TV: GOLTV USA (U.S.) Sky Bundesliga 2/HD (Germany)
Online: Klowd TV (U.S.), Sky Go Deutschland (Germany)
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