Dino Toppmöller’s Frankfurt recently bounced back from a Champions League defeat to Liverpool by defeating St. Pauli, thanks to a brace from Jonathan Burkardt. That win lifted Frankfurt to sixth place in the Bundesliga, just four points behind their upcoming opponents, Borussia Dortmund.
Historically, Frankfurt have found cup success hard to come by, with their last DFB-Pokal triumph coming under Kovač in 2018, ending a 30-year wait. Since then, under Toppmöller and Oliver Glasner, the club has fallen short, including a final defeat to RB Leipzig. Kovač, now on the Dortmund bench, remains the only coach to have led Frankfurt to domestic cup glory this century.
Dortmund, meanwhile, come into the tie in strong form, having lost only once in their first eight Bundesliga matches this season and sitting in the league’s top four. Their Champions League campaign has also started brightly, with the team scoring four goals in each of their first three matches. Kovač, who lost on his return to Allianz Arena earlier this season, will hope to guide Dortmund past the stage where they were eliminated last year by VfL Wolfsburg.
Team news sees Frankfurt likely to start Can Uzun and Burkardt, both of whom were used as substitutes in the recent Champions League outing. Michael Zetterer is expected to retain his spot in goal. For Dortmund, Frankfurt-born Niklas Süle could return to the starting lineup, while Julian Brandt will be pushing for a starting role after a string of solid performances. However, captain Emre Can and Julien Duranville remain sidelined through injury.
Predicted lineups suggest Frankfurt will field Zetterer; Kristensen, Koch, Theate; Doan, Chaibi, Skhiri, Brown; Knauff, Uzun; Burkardt. Dortmund are expected to line up with Kobel; Anton, Schlotterbeck, Bensebaini; Yan Couto, Sabitzer, Nmecha, Svensson; Adeyemi, Brandt; Guirassy.
With both sides targeting cup success and the added narrative of Kovač’s return, this DFB-Pokal clash promises to be a closely contested encounter. For live coverage and historical head-to-head stats, visit Flashscore: Eintracht Frankfurt v Dortmund. Further insights on the teams and DFB-Pokal history can be found at Bundesliga.com: DFB-Pokal Preview.