8 unbeaten vs. coach change: Frankfurt’s fight against Leverkusen may make the “nemesis” a thing of the past!

Frankfurt's Bundesliga ranking continues to rise, and many observers have regarded this Frankfurt as the number one favorite among the "Bayern Chaser". This away challenge to "nemesis" Leverkusen, this game may be announced. What kind of strength does this team from Hessen have?

Frankfurt is in excellent condition recently, and it can even be regarded as one of the rare peak periods in team history. Since the cross-season, the Hesse team has remained unbeaten in 8 games, and this season has continued the outstanding momentum of last season - not only has outstanding results, but also has a very entertaining style.

In the first two rounds of the Bundesliga, the team won both games, and their opponents Bremen and Hoffenheim did not get an effective counterattack opportunity; in the German Cup, they easily defeated the amateur team Engels and advanced smoothly. The current momentum is almost the best start.

"The team started very smoothly." Frankfurt head coach Topmuller said that he had a hard time finding something to be overly picky, whether it was the ended games or daily training. "The whole team is very cohesive and highly focused. Therefore, we will go to Leverkusen with confidence."

Turbulent and stable duel

This time Frankfurt is against the Bundesliga runner-up last season, and many people speculate that this may be a "power transfer battle": on one side is Leverkusen with a turbulent lineup, and on the other side is Frankfurt with a stable state - both teams hope to occupy an important position in the Bundesliga No. 1 and launch an attack on Bayern Munich.

However, Leverkusen recently completed a head coach change (Eric Tenhach stepped down and Caspar Yulmand took over). Topmuller believes that this brings a "special challenge" to Frankfurt: "We must be fully prepared. The opponent is like a 'blind box' now. You never know what you will encounter, especially be careful of the three-center-back system. But we will deal with this game in the style Frankfurt is a usual style."

Topmuller emphasized: "Keep the courage and put pressure on the opponent as soon as possible. This is our tactical philosophy." Previously, Frankfurt sold core striker Hugo Ekitic to Liverpool. At first, the outside world was worried that the team would "stall" on the offensive end. But the fact is exactly the opposite, the team's offensive system has not been broken. Last season, Frankfurt qualified for the Champions League through league rankings for the first time in history. The core of the offensive was Omar Marmush and Ekitic, the forward duo who performed brilliantly; and this season, the team's offense has become more "unpredictable".

"Do not hinder the growth of players"

Now, Don't integrate seamlessly into the team and becomes a key player to change the situation; young forwards Jean-Matteo Bahoya and Jan Uzun have great potential; in the midfield, 21-year-old Hugo Lasson is experienced, like an experienced veteran; Faris Shaibi has shown excellent tactical awareness and can often launch key attacks. On the defensive end, Frankfurt is one of the best defense lines in the team history. It is worth mentioning that Namdi Collins, who was highly discussed during the national team game window - the new German international cannot even guarantee the main position in Frankfurt, because as long as other defenders (Rasmus Christensen, Robin Koch, Arthur Tate, Nathaniel Brown) remain healthy, he needs to compete for the opportunity to play.

Despite the constant praise from the outside world, Frankfurt is also aware of the shortcomings of the lineup. Sports director Markus Krösche was active in the process of trying to bring in a striker and a defensive midfielder (No. 6) at the transfer deadline, but ultimately failed. "There is really no suitable candidate in the transfer market." Klescher explained early this week, which is also the reason why he and the club decided to give up the "habitual buzzer-beating contract".

"We never want to hinder the growth of players in the team, nor do we want to take risks for it." Klescher emphasized, "So it is important not only to pay too much attention to external signings, but also to pay attention to and tap the potential of players in the team."

Goalkeeper Rising Star Santos returns to the roster

For this decision, coach Topmuller fully understands - he has dealt with more complex lineup issues before (such as the sale of core forwards multiple times). He is full of confidence in his current lineup, and the team's lineup is almost complete in this focus match against Leverkusen.

The only absence was Mario Gotze: The former World Cup champion is still suffering from a muscle injury. However, forwards Jonathan Burcate (previously back injury), Eliyes Skiri (previously knee injury) and goalkeeper Coon Santos have all recovered from injury and returned to the roster.

The young Brazilian goalkeeper is regarded as the "future main goalkeeper" in Frankfurt and is even considered the most promising goalkeeper star in the Bundesliga. But after experiencing a serious knee injury, he may need more patience. Topmuller did not make it clear whether Santos would start: "Sometimes I will reveal my lineup ideas, but this time I won't. We have a clear plan for Coon Santos' arrangements in the next few weeks."

However, the trend is more obvious: Michel Zetel, who has never joined Bremen, will likely continue to guard the goal.