In this article, we have prepared for you an in-depth analysis of the Round 14 matchup that will take place on Sunday in Berlin between Hertha BSC and their guests from Frankfurt.
Soccer action at Olympic Stadium in Berlin gets back this Sunday in one of the final two Week 14 matchups when Hertha BSC locks horns with the Eagles from Frankfurt. The hosts are coming off from their first road victory of the season as they managed to take down the easiest opponent in Germany this year, FC Koln squad (2:0).
Eintracht Frankfurt on the other side suffered their first defeat in seven rounds as they got outplayed by a currently high-flying Bayer Leverkusen team at home (0:1). The teams are entering final four rounds of the first part of the season and the results they record now will determine the path and priorities of the squads during the break. Better starting position before the second part of the competition reliefs the pressure and provides certain bragging rights for the fans during the winter holidays.
Hertha BSC vs. Eintracht Frankfurt
Three-Way: 1: Hertha BSC +183; X: +240 Draw; 2: Eintracht Frankfurt +183 at BetDSI Sportsbook
Spread 0: Hertha BSC +100; Eintracht Frankfurt -104
Total +2.5: Over +125; Under -122
HERTHA BSC
The Hertha Berlin team bounced back very well after that 4:2 home loss by Borussia Monchengladbach two weeks ago with a solid road performance last week at RheinEnergieStadion where they easily took down the Billy Goats. Nevertheless, the Blue-Whites are performing a lot worse than they did last year when they held the crown of the best home team of the season with 12 wins in 17 games. Appearance in the UEFA Europa League can also be labeled as a disaster because the squad is currently ranked at the bottom of the group J that features teams from two much weaker leagues than Bundesliga, Swedish Premier League (Ostersund) and Ukrainian Premier League (Zorya Luhansk). They collected only four points (1-1-3 record) after five rounds and they don’t have any chance of advancing to the next stage.
In Bundesliga, they are currently ranked at No. 11 spot with 17 points and a 4-5-4 record (3-2-2 at home). Their goal difference is 18-19 (11-11 at home) and 57% of their home games had over 2.5 goals in total. They’ve managed to concede at least one goal in each of their last six matches but they’ve also managed to score two or more goals in each of their last four duels. Both teams scored in 62% of their overall games and the most common score at home was a 2:1 win (occurred twice). An interesting fact is that Hertha team managed to score and concede at least one goal in both halves in 31% of their overall showdowns.
Head coach Pal Dardai prefers the traditional 4-4-2 scheme with Weiser, Langkamp, Rekik and Plattenhardt as defensive linemen and Leckie, Maier, Skjelbred and Mittelstadt operating in front of them. Selke and Ibisevic usually start at centre-forward positions. Vedad Ibisevic and Mathew Leckie top the team in scoring with four goals each while Salomon Kalou has three in his account. Along with Marvin Plattenhardt, Ibisevic also recorded team-high three assists while passing segment belongs to defender Karim Rekik with 550 total passes recorded. Goalkeeper Rune Jarstein has 166 shots against, 43 saves and two clean-sheet games so far while Marvin Plattenhardt has team-high three yellow cards. Vedad Ibisevic and Genki Haraguchi also got sent off once each.
Vladimir Darida (knee) is expected to be back in early December while Sebastian Langekamp’s (hip) and Valentin Stocker’s (meniscus) status is unknown. Niklas Stark (calf) and Julian Schieber (knee) are both back in training and it’s a matter of days when they will be available to start.
EINTRACHT FRANKFURT
The six-game undefeated streak by the Eagles during which they recorded three wins and three draws, came to an end last weekend when they suffered a home loss to Bayer Leverkusen. The squad obviously performs better on the road because only one of four total defeats so far came while visiting. Their home venue, Commerzbank-Arena doesn’t present an advantage and the fans are certainly not loving it. Still, if they can compensate the lost home point on the road, I’m sure that they won’t be displeased for long.
The team is currently ranked at No. 9 spot in the league table with 19 points and a 5-4-4 record (3-3-1 on the road). They score 1.08 and concede 1.00 goals per match (14-13 goal difference) and 54% of their overall matches had under 2.5 goals in total. They’ve managed to score at least one goal in each of their last six road games and 36% of their goals scored came in last 15 minutes of the matchups. Every single road game so far had under 3.5 goals in total while both teams scored in 57% of their away duels. Similarly to their next opponent, the team managed to score and concede at least one goal in both halves in the same number of games (27%).
Croatian manager Niko Kovac usually uses the 3-5-2 scheme with Falette, Abraham, and Salcedo at centre-back positions and Wolf and Willems operating down the flanks. Stendera, Boateng, and Gacinovic control the middle of the field while Rebic and Haller operate up front and have mostly attacking assignments. Strikers Sebastien Haller and Ante Rebic top the team in scoring with five and four goals so far while Kevin-Prince Boateng has two in his account. Along with Marius Wolf, Haller is also the team’s leading assister with two while passing segment belongs to defender David Baraham with 406 total passes recorded. Goalie Lukas Hradecky has 161 shots against, 42 saves and three clean-sheet games so far while Abraham, Falette, Gelson Fernandes and Gacinovic top the team in bookings with three yellow cards each. Falette also has one red card.
Timothy Chandler (meniscus) is expected to be back in action before New Year while Jonathan De Guzman’s (shoulder, muscle) and Alexander Meier’s (ankle) timetable for return is set for early January and early February next year. Makoto Hasebe’s (knee), Marco Russ’s (Achilles tendon) and Yanni Regasel’s (back) status is unknown while Omar Mascarell (Achilles tendon) is back in training.
Hertha BSC vs. Eintracht Frankfurt – Match Prediction
The Hertha team held the upper hand in last year’s matchup between these two foes with a 2:0 home win and 3:3 road draw. Last time Frankfurt managed to avoid the defeat in Olympic Stadium in Berlin was on 16 May 2015. In the opening round of the 2013 season, Hertha Berlin inflicted the toughest defeat when it comes to the head to head matchups with a 6:1 win. This scenario is hardly going to replicate on Sunday but the hosts have the most chances of winning this one having in mind the home field advantage and the fact that their spirits might be on the rise after a road win last week. Still, my first pick here will be under 2.5 goals in total and I will avoid the final winner prediction because it could go either way.
My pick: Under 2.5 goals (-122)
