Eintracht knocked out of Europe | OneFootball

Frankfurt lost 2-1 to Union Saint-Gilloise in the second leg of their Europa Conference League play-off (4-3 on aggregate).

Head coach Dino Toppmöller made three changes to the starting XI from Sunday’s Bundesliga match at Freiburg, with Robin Koch, Niels Nkounkou and Ansgar Knauff restored to the line-up. The latter was the only change from the 2-2 draw in the first leg in Belgium, replacing the injured Sasa Kalajdzic.

Uneventful first half

In contrast to the first leg, the first half was a cagey affair. Union did work a couple of half chances here and there, with Koki Machida warming Kevin Trapp’s gloves with a long-range effort, while Farès Chaibi found the net for Eintracht but from an offside position. There was little else for the crowd of 57,300 to get excited about until the 45th minute, when Chaibi’s fine free-kick was tipped over by Anthony Moris in the last action of the half.

Early blow, late hope

The second period started in the worst possible way for the Eagles as they conceded just a minute after the restart. After the visitors won possession just inside the Frankfurt half, Mohammed Amoura danced into the box before laying the ball off to Cameron Puertas, who placed a precise finish past a plethora of bodies and out of Trapp’s reach.

Eintracht looked to restore parity quickly and Toppmöller brought on attacking reinforcements in the form of Hugo Ekitikéand Éric Junior Dina Ebimbe. Koch headed wide from a corner, but as the Eagles pushed forward more they were vulnerable on the counter. Puertas had the chance to score a second on 70 minutes when he was again set up by the lively Amoura, but the Swiss fired straight at Trapp.

Seven minutes later, with Sebastian Rode now also on the field for Eintracht, Niels Nkounkou had the best opportunity to equalise, but his powerful header into the ground drew an excellent reflex save from Moris. The Eagles were left ruing that missed chance moments later, when substitute Dennis Eckert Ayensa volleyed the ball in from a corner to make it 2-0 to Saint-Gilloise on the night. Dina Ebimbe gave Eintracht hope when he headed in Chaibi’s cross in the 87th minute, but despite throwing everything forward in the six minutes of added time, it was too little too late as the Eagles bowed out of Europe for this season.