Eintracht Frankfurt came into this contest well aware that a win would hoist them back into the Bundesliga’s top four and the Eagles quickly set about their task of taking the game to Cologne. The early pressure almost paid off when Daichi Kamada’s corner skidded off the turf and bounced onto the arm of Cologne’s Eric Martel for a possible handball, but a lengthy VAR review eventually spared the defender’s blushes and no penalty was awarded.
Frankfurt continued to control possession and probed for an opening against a Cologne side that conceded just twice since the Bundesliga’s restart in late January. Randal Kolo Muani nearly generated the moment of inspiration when the Frankfurt danger man raced into the penalty area, was set to pull the trigger from 10 yards before Benno Schmitz’s last-ditch tackle nicked the ball from the Frenchman’s foot to keep the scores level at half-time.
Cologne punished Frankfurt for their lack of cutting edge and ended their Bundesliga goalless run at 315 minutes straight after the break when Florian Kainz’s whipped cross into the six-yard box was headered in by the stooping Timo Hubers. Suddenly, Frankfurt were struggling to find the attacking cohesion that returned 40 goals from 19 Bundesliga matches this season and the Eagles were undone with a deadly Cologne counter-attack as Sargis Adamyan burst into the box, forced a save from Kevin Trapp but Ellyes Skhiri was lurking to tap the rebound into the net.
Frankfurt showed few signs of staging a comeback and the Eagles couldn’t make things click in the final third and Cologne sealed the points when Skhiri volleyed in a loose ball inside the penalty area. It was a deserved win for Cologne, who blew Frankfurt away in the second period, and Steffen Baumgart’s side remain unbeaten in five Bundesliga matches. The dropped points will be sorely missed by Frankfurt and
Flashscore Man of the Match: Timo Hubers (FC Cologne)
