Bundesliga
Bundesliga
05.11.2009 16:50:31
Leverkusen and Germany No1 René Adler is out of the game injured.
Leverkusen v Frankfurt Preview
Leverkusen and Frankfurt kick off the action on Bundesliga matchday 12. Being the only top flight outfit without a loss so far this season, there is not doubt the hosts will go into the match as hot favourites. However, the Jupp Heynckes' charges will need to replace their No1 keeper René Adler, while Frankfurt seem to have picked up some momentum after beating Bochum 2-1 last weekend.
Fabian Giefer will celebrate his debut appearance in the Bundesliga on Friday by replacing German international René Adler in goal, as he is suffering from an inflammation of the cornea. Instead of the experienced Thomasz Bobel or injured second keeper Benedikt Fernandez, Heynckes looks set to give the nod to 19-year-old Giefer, who will debut in Germay's top tier.
Unbeaten so far
At the start of the week it looked as though Leverkusen would also be without 36-year-old central defender Sami Hyypiä, as he was dealing with an ankle injury. But the former Liverpool star has recovered and will feature in the starting eleven. The same goes for Castro, who visited Dr. Hans Müller-Wohlfart during the week in order to receive treatment for his thigh problem.
Leverkusen are the only unbeaten team in the Bundesliga so far this season and due to their in-form offensive department of Toni Kroos, Tranquillo Barnetta, Stefan Kießling and Eren Derdiyok, this statistic is likely to remain unchanged on Bundesliga matchday 12.
There was some devastating news for Frankfurt and coach Skibbe at the start of the week as word got through that Ioannis Amanatidis will be out of action for an unknown period. It is said that this second knee surgery will be more complicated than the first one and hence Frankfurt will have to do without their Greek hitman until at least the winter break.
Amanatidis fears long injury break
Aside from Amanatidis, coach Skibbe has several more injured players to worry about. Patrick Ochs is sidelined with a broken rib, but the Frankfurt coach is confident he will be available again when Frankfurt host Borussia Mönchengladbach on matchday 13. Keeper Oka Nikolov is also doubtful and will be replaced by Ralf Fährmann if he proves to be too much of a risk.
It will be an emotional game for coach Michael Skibbe who returns to the club he once managed for three seasons. "It is definitely a very special game for me. I played a part in building the team that's so successful right now and I do know their weaknesses, but there aren't many," said Skibbe before declaring his former club as his personal favourite to win the championship this season. Hence, it is safe to say that Skibbe and Frankfurt would be satisfied with taking a point from the current table leaders Leverkusen.
Top facts:
Leverkusen have only won once in their last six meetings with Eintracht (two draws, three defeats).
Frankfurt's last three matches have all ended 2-1. Eintracht won their two home matches against Bochum and Hannover by this result but also lost by the same scoreline against Bayern München.
Eintracht have only kept two clean sheets this season – Mainz are the only club with fewer shutouts to their name (one).
Possible starting line-ups:
Leverkusen: Giefer - Schwaab, Friedrich, Hyypiä, Castro - Vidal, Reinartz - Barnetta, Kroos - Kießling, Derdiyok
Frankfurt: Nikolov (Fährmann) - Franz, Chris, Russ, Spycher - Schwegler - Teber, Bajramovic - Caio - Meier, Liberopoulos
Unbeaten so far
At the start of the week it looked as though Leverkusen would also be without 36-year-old central defender Sami Hyypiä, as he was dealing with an ankle injury. But the former Liverpool star has recovered and will feature in the starting eleven. The same goes for Castro, who visited Dr. Hans Müller-Wohlfart during the week in order to receive treatment for his thigh problem.
Leverkusen are the only unbeaten team in the Bundesliga so far this season and due to their in-form offensive department of Toni Kroos, Tranquillo Barnetta, Stefan Kießling and Eren Derdiyok, this statistic is likely to remain unchanged on Bundesliga matchday 12.
There was some devastating news for Frankfurt and coach Skibbe at the start of the week as word got through that Ioannis Amanatidis will be out of action for an unknown period. It is said that this second knee surgery will be more complicated than the first one and hence Frankfurt will have to do without their Greek hitman until at least the winter break.
Amanatidis fears long injury break
Aside from Amanatidis, coach Skibbe has several more injured players to worry about. Patrick Ochs is sidelined with a broken rib, but the Frankfurt coach is confident he will be available again when Frankfurt host Borussia Mönchengladbach on matchday 13. Keeper Oka Nikolov is also doubtful and will be replaced by Ralf Fährmann if he proves to be too much of a risk.
It will be an emotional game for coach Michael Skibbe who returns to the club he once managed for three seasons. "It is definitely a very special game for me. I played a part in building the team that's so successful right now and I do know their weaknesses, but there aren't many," said Skibbe before declaring his former club as his personal favourite to win the championship this season. Hence, it is safe to say that Skibbe and Frankfurt would be satisfied with taking a point from the current table leaders Leverkusen.
Top facts:
Leverkusen have only won once in their last six meetings with Eintracht (two draws, three defeats).
Frankfurt's last three matches have all ended 2-1. Eintracht won their two home matches against Bochum and Hannover by this result but also lost by the same scoreline against Bayern München.
Eintracht have only kept two clean sheets this season – Mainz are the only club with fewer shutouts to their name (one).
Possible starting line-ups:
Leverkusen: Giefer - Schwaab, Friedrich, Hyypiä, Castro - Vidal, Reinartz - Barnetta, Kroos - Kießling, Derdiyok
Frankfurt: Nikolov (Fährmann) - Franz, Chris, Russ, Spycher - Schwegler - Teber, Bajramovic - Caio - Meier, Liberopoulos
More club news
