After a week off Bundesliga duty, Bayern looked as though they had plenty of rust to shake off in the early stages as Frankfurt dominated. After a couple of close shaves, the Rekordmeister were punished for their sloppy start, conceding inside the opening quarter-hour.
After Noussair Mazraoui failed to clear Aurelio Buta’s cross, Fares Chaibi’s effort came back off the bar, where it was met by Omar Marmoush to impressively slot home the opener.
The Egyptian loves a fast start - that was already his fifth Bundesliga goal inside the opening 15 minutes of a game.
Thomas Tuchel’s men now needed to respond, and Harry Kane was the man he’d have wanted their first big chance to fall to. Unusually though, the England captain could only fire wide with the outside of his boot after being slotted in by Leon Goretzka.
That miss would prove especially costly as Kim Min-Jae was caught in possession by Ansgar Knauff, and Junior Dina Ebimbe brilliantly capitalised to somehow squeeze the ball past Manuel Neuer at his near post.
A dream first half for the Eagles got even better before the break, as the hosts moved three ahead. Another interception in the opposition half created the opening for Frankfurt, with Marmoush feeding Hugo Larsson to slot past Neuer and send Deutsche Bank Park wild.
The home crowd went into the interval on a sombre note however, as Joshua Kimmich’s gorgeous long-range drive nestled in the top corner to reduce the arrears before the break.
Frankfurt supporters would’ve been forgiven for worrying their side would be on the end of a Bayern barrage after the restart, but after another defensive mistake, this time from Dayot Upamecano, the hosts scored a fourth.
Chaibi seized on the Frenchman’s error and played Dina Ebimbe in on goal, and for the second time, he beat Neuer at his near post to re-establish their three-goal lead.
Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting’s glaring miss from close range summed up Bayern’s forlorn comeback efforts, and the result was soon well beyond doubt when Knauff slotted home the hosts’ fifth on the hour mark.
A bruising afternoon saw Tuchel’s men miss out on the chance to return to the summit, and they could trail Bayer Leverkusen by six points if Die Werkself win tomorrow.
Dino Toppmoller’s side avoided losing back-to-back home games for the first time in nearly two years, closing the gap to the European places to two points with a first Bundesliga victory in over a month.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Junior Dina Ebimbe (Eintracht Frankfurt)
Other afternoon results in the Bundesliga:
Union Berlin 3 B. Monchengladbach 1
