Augsburg vs Eintracht Frankfurt
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Today’s free tip is in the German Bundesliga encounter between Augsburg and Eintracht Frankfurt.
Winning in Augsburg is seldom easy. Augsburg are organised, extremely determined, and very difficult to contain. Indeed, I don’t remember the last time I opposed them when they were at home. However, I intend to do so here because I have an awful lot of faith in what Hutter is doing at Eintracht Frankfurt. He’s converted them from a stout, defensive outfit under Niko Kovac to a free-flowing attacking style. They’re a German version of Young Boys Bern, basically. They play the same style with the same type of players – and it’s working, at least for now.
Defensively speaking, Eintracht Frankfurt is not a team to trust. They’re an attacking team now. They rely on keeping the ball as their main method of defending. If teams get at them properly, they’ll concede goals. However, to get the ball off them and to handle their raw pace and energy is another matter entirely. It’s very difficult to beat such a convincing, confident outfit, which is basically what Eintracht Frankfurt are right now. Whether by luck or on purpose, Hutter has assembled a team with experienced leaders as a spine, fast attackers with everything to prove, and a unit that has wonderful command of the ball. They’re a side to respect.
I mean, the media can laud Jovic and Rebic all they want to. This Eintracht Frankfurt side is thriving because of Hutter’s approach and managerial skills, not because Jovic and Rebic suddenly found their potential. They’re not these amazing wonderkids that the newspapers are making them out to be. Yes, they’re good players, and both are very helpful from an attacking perspective. Jovic is in good form too! However, Eintracht Frankfurt is succeeding as a unit. I doubt Jovic or Rebic could go to another club and do well as they both only seem to respond to certain managers, hence both of them being at this club to begin with. As a unit, though, this team works really well. I like watching them play. They might not win this game because they do lack the capacity to defend, but I’d be surprised if they lost it, based on their excellent displays this season.
I have a lot of respect for their hosts Augsburg, though. This is a side that simply does not accept being beaten. Mentally, they’re arguably the strongest side in the Bundesliga. They’re fighters, Augsburg, and that’s what most teams struggle to handle when it comes to facing them. They’re capable of playing good football too, albeit not on a Bv09 Borussia Dortmund scale. What impresses me the most about Augsburg is their flexibility and variety though. They’re arguably the best side in the division at scoring from set pieces so how do you contain a team like this? Most teams can’t; that’s the brutal reality of it, and I would be very surprised if Eintracht Frankfurt kept a clean sheet against them today.
Having said that, Augsburg have some potential problems looming today. Korean midfield mainstay Koo is a doubt for this game, as is the heartbeat of their midfield, Hahn, and Icelandic star striker Finnbogason. Augsburg perform wonderfully as a unit but those three are incredibly important players for them. Indeed, I’d only suggest that Caiuby and Gregoritsch could rival them for such titles, especially with Stafylidis still out of the equation. I’m sure at least one of them will play here but will all three? Finnbogason is a risk, given how injury-prone he can be, and Hahn is no different. Suffice to say that I think Augsburg will be denied some of those services today, and that if they do they feature, they won’t be at their best. That should affect how effective they are, and in a game against such a prolific Eintracht Frankfurt side, that could well be very costly.
It won’t be easy for the visitors, and a draw certainly is a possibility here, but I think it makes sense to back Eintracht Frankfurt with draw no bet cover today as it looks unlikely that they’ll lose, all things considered.
Verdict: Eintracht Frankfurt to win with draw no bet at 83/100.
Saturday’s Thoughts
As ever, if there are any explanations required then please feel free to post a comment! For the remainder of my thoughts on today’s games, see below, although I feel compelled to write that the below are not necessarily my tips but merely my thoughts. For confidence ratings, you’ll need to go to the members section here.
Copa Libertadores:
River Plate vs Boca Juniors
Australian A-League:
Wellington Phoenix vs Adelaide United
Brisbane Roar vs Melbourne City
Austrian Bundesliga:
Admira Wacker vs Austria Vienna
Wolfsberger AC vs SV Mattersburg
Hartberg vs Salzburg
Belgian Eerste Klasse:
Standard de Liege vs AS Eupen
KV Oostende vs Kortrijk
Waasland-Beveren vs Royal Excel Mouscron
Racing Genk vs Cercle Brugge
Brazilian Serie A:
Santos vs Atletico Mineiro
Bulgarian A PFG:
Septemvri Sofia vs Cherno More Varna
Dunav 2010 vs CSKA Sofia
Lokomotiv Plovdiv vs Ludogorets Razgrad
Croatian Prva Liga:
Rijeka vs Dinamo Zagreb
Gorica vs Istra 1961
Czech Republic HET Liga:
Karvina vs Slavia Prague
Bohemians 1905 vs Marila Pribram
Zlin vs Opava
Banik Ostrava vs Slovacko
Danish Superligaen:
Hobro vs Randers
English Premier League:
Brighton & Hove Albion vs Leicester City
Everton vs Cardiff City
Fulham vs Southampton
Manchester United vs Crystal Palace
Watford vs Liverpool
West Ham United vs Manchester City
Tottenham Hotspur vs Chelsea
French Ligue 1:
Paris Saint-Germain vs Toulouse
Stade Malherbe de Caen vs AS Monaco
Dijon FCO vs Girondins de Bordeaux
Nantes Atlantique vs Angers SCO
Stade de Reims vs En Avant Guingamp
Racing Club Strasbourg vs Nimes Olympique
German Bundesliga:
Bayern Munich vs Fortuna Dusseldorf
Hertha Berlin vs Hoffenheim
Augsburg vs Eintracht Frankfurt
Mainz 05 vs Bv09 Borussia Dortmund
VfL Wolfsburg vs RB Leipzig
Schalke 04 vs Nurnberg
German Bundesliga 2:
Holstein Kiel vs SV Sandhausen
VfL Bochum vs Erzgebirge Aue
Darmstadt 98 vs Koln
Hungarian Liga 1:
Budapest Honved vs Mezokovesd-Zsory
Ujpest vs Paksi SE
Ferencvaros vs Varda SE
Puskas FC vs Szombathelyi Haladas
Diosgyori VTK vs MTK Budapest
Italian Serie A:
Udinese vs AS Roma
Juventus vs SPAL
Internazionale vs Frosinone
Italian Serie B:
Livorno vs Cittadella
Padova vs Carpi
Venezia vs Brescia
Benevento vs Perugia
Dutch Eredivisie:
PEC Zwolle vs ADO Den Haag
NAC Breda vs AFC Ajax Amsterdam
PSV Eindhoven vs Heerenveen
Fortuna Sittard vs Heracles Almelo
Norwegian Eliteserien:
Brann Bergen vs Odd
Lillestrom vs Kristiansund
Sandefjord vs Molde FK
Stabaek vs Stromsgodset
Haugesund vs Start Kristiansand
Rosenborg BK vs Bodo/Glimt
Valerenga Oslo vs Ranheim
Tromso vs Sarpsborg 08
Russian Premier League:
Dinamo Moscow vs Yenisey
FK Orenburg vs FK Ufa
Anzhi Makhachkala vs Rubin Kazan’
Spanish Primera Liga:
Eibar vs Real Madrid
Valencia CF vs Rayo Vallecano de Madrid
Huesca vs Levante
Atletico Madrid vs Barcelona CF
Swiss Super League:
Neuchatel Xamax vs FC Zurich
Young Boys Bern vs Lugano
Swiss Challenge League:
Lausanne Sport vs Winterthur
Servette vs Vaduz
Turkish Super Lig:
BB Erzurumspor vs Antalyaspor
Alanyaspor vs Kayserispor
Ankaragucu vs Besiktas JK
Enjoy your free betting tips!