Debutant Eintracht Frankfurt has surprisingly reached the round of 16 in the Champions League and can look forward to more European nights in spring 2023. The team of head coach Oliver Glasner won 2-1 (0-1) at Sporting Lisbon on Tuesday evening and turned a deficit in front of 41,744 spectators in the last group game to preserve the last chance of staying in the premier class. Because Tottenham Hotspur won 2-1 at Olympique Marseille, Eintracht finished second in the group behind England.
Arthur Gomes (39th minute) scored for the hosts before Daichi Kamada (62nd/hand penalty) and Randal Kolo Muani (72nd) turned the game in favor of the Europa League winners. The Round of 16 matches will take place in February and March.
Even a larger rotation around Eric-Maxim Choupo-Moting, who continues to hit the target fantastically, has not ripped FC Bayern out of the current flow of success. The Munich team completed a flawless Champions League group stage with a 2-0 (1-0) win over second-placed Inter Milan. The German record champions are the first club to win an 18-point preliminary round for the third time in Europe’s premier class.
World champion Benjamin Pavard scored the goals in front of 75,000 spectators in the Allianz Arena with his first Champions League goal (32nd) and Choupo-Moting with a dream goal in the corner (72nd). Without a few injured and partially rested stars, the offensive game did not always run smoothly in Munich’s seventh competitive win in a row. But Bayern boss Oliver Kahn was right when he said on Amazon Prime Video: “The rotation is working now!”
Of course, Bayern also had a bad time because referee Ivan Kruzliak did not give the expected penalty after a protective hand from Sadio Mané in a powerful shot by Nicolo Barella, even according to the video images. Bayern will find out their opponents in the round of 16 next Monday when the draw takes place in Nyon.
The cheering in the Leverkusen ranks was only restrained at the final whistle. Crisis club Bayer 04 trembled with a poor 0-0 draw against FC Brugge for an international hibernation. The Rhinelanders, who were once again unconvincing in terms of football, benefited from FC Porto’s 2-1 win over Atlético Madrid on the last matchday of the Champions League group stage and passed the Spaniards in third place.
In the new year, Bayer 04 can continue playing in the intermediate round of the Europa League. In order to survive there and in the Bundesliga, the table-16. however, increase significantly. Coach Xabi Alonso’s team rarely tapped into their potential in front of 30,210 spectators on Tuesday evening.
“We’ve reached the minimum goal. We’ll be there when the games start in February. We’re happy about that, especially in the current difficult phase,” said Bayer captain Lukas Hradecky.