Eintracht Frankfurt Vs Salzburg
Thursday 20th February 2020 – 17:55 Kick-Off
UEFA Europa League
Pick: Frankfurt to WIN
Odds: 11/10
Bookmaker: Coral
(All betting odds displayed were correct at time of writing: 17th February 2020 at 16:30)
Preview: In last season’s Europa League group stage, these two clubs produced immaculate campaigns to top their sections without dropping a single point. The pair meet in the Round of 32 on Thursday as Eintracht Frankfurt welcome RB Salzburg to the Commerzbank-Arena in Germany.
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Table of Contents
Eintracht Frankfurt Preview – Die Adler can continue fine start to year?
Last season’s exciting run to the semi-finals, missing out on the final itself after losing on penalties to Chelsea, is not expected to be repeated this time around. The German club played some exhilarating football then, spearheaded by the lethal striking duo of Luka Jovic and Sebastein Haller. Both players were moved on in the summer, though, with the team struggling to scale those same heights in the first half of this season.
In fact, had Standard Liege held on to beat Arsenal on the final matchday of the group, Frankfurt would not be involved right now. Fine margins. They were also cutting it fine around Christmas as well, when six defeats in seven league games saw them plummet down the Bundesliga table before returning from the winter break reinvigorated. Coach Adi Hutter masterminding three wins and only one loss from their five games since the turn of the year.
If their recent form is much improved, their performance during the group was far less convincing. Finishing with an even number of wins and losses (W3 L3) they would actually fare worse on home soil (W1 L2), beating only Standard Liege and conceding on at least one occasion in all three. Which is in sharp contrast to their league form this season, having collected 21 of their 28 points from home matches and winning each of the most recent two without conceding.
Salzburg Preview – Weakened Austrians still capable of entertaining?
Flawless in the group, Austrian side Red Bull Salzburg won all six matches upon progressing to the last-sixteen of this competition in 2018-19, only to be narrowly beaten over two legs by Napoli. They would be drawn alongside the Italians again in this season’s Champions League group stage – their first taste of the tournament proper – and having given a credible account of themselves in more esteemed company, are now considered one of the stronger teams dropping into the Europa League.
In a daunting Group E that contained reigning European champions Liverpool, Napoli and Genk, the Austrians produced a thrilling spectacle every time they took to the pitch and remained in qualifying contention until the bitter end. Nearly five goals were averaged across their six contests, with high-scoring encounters with Genk (W6-2 and W1-4), Napoli (L2-3) and even giving the English side a scare at Anfield in a thrilling affair which ended in a 4-3 defeat.
Unfortunately their subsequent exit resulted in a number of star performers seeking moves elsewhere in January, with the departures of Takumi Minamino and Erling Braut Haaland attracting many a headline. Forward Moanes Dabour, who scored 8 times in this competition last term, was also sold in the summer. So they are undoubtedly weaker. Meanwhile a shock weekend defeat at home to LASK Linz, in their second competitive match this year, was far from ideal preparation – a first league defeat of 2019-20.
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Frankfurt Vs Salzburg Betting Advice
Whether it be in Austria or the Champions League, goals are usually guaranteed with RB Salzburg. The main problem now is replacing the goals seemingly lost when sanctioning the recent sales of Haaland and Minamino. Furthermore, can we be certain they are sufficiently up to speed? Saturday’s 3-2 loss at home to LASK Linz was only their second competitive encounter of 2020. It was also without the aforementioned duo, who were so influential in their earlier escapades.
Frankfurt Vs Salzburg – Key Facts
- Salzburg dropped out of the Champions League when finishing third in a group behind Liverpool and Napoli. Their six games averaged close to five goals per game.
- Frankfurt qualified as a runner-up in their Europa League section, behind Arsenal but ahead of Standard Liege. Their final four games produced both teams to score.
- This will be the first competitive meeting between the two clubs. Frankfurt were semi-finalists in last season’s tournament whereas RB Salzburg exited in the Last-Sixteen.
By contrast, Frankfurt already have five league outings under their belts since the winter break and fared rather well in them, losing only once (W3 D1 L1). They’ve won both games at home so far, by an aggregate of 7-0. Another win to nil is unlikely, though: Salzburg notched in all but one of their Champions League group games, while Frankfurt didn’t keep a single clean sheet on home soil en route to this stage.
I am leaning more towards Frankfurt here, so Home & Both To Score (12/5 Bet365) and Home & Over 3.5 Goals (18/5 Coral) are both worth chancing.
Best Betting Odds for Eintracht Frankfurt Vs RB Salzburg
Eintracht Frankfurt – 11/10 Coral
Draw – 27/10 WilliamHill
RB Salzburg – 5/2 Sportingbet
