Albert Lira will be looking to maintain his perfect record at Deutsche Bank Park when Frankfurt face Bundesliga side Heidenheim on Saturday. The Eagles are yet to win away from home since the arrival of the Spanish coach, but they beat Gladbach and Freiburg in front of their fans without conceding a goal.
Conversely, Heidenheim have picked up just three points since match day 13, with their only away points coming at fellow struggling Wolfsburg. A dramatic 3-3 draw with Stuttgart was the only time they have avoided defeat in their last seven games.
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Frank Schmidt’s side also struggled against Eintracht Frankfurt. The 1-1 draw was the only time Frankfurt failed to beat the visiting team on Saturday. Budou Zivchivadze’s goal was only their second of the Bundesliga game, but Rasmus Christensen salvaged a point for Frankfurt in a game of few chances.
It was one of the disappointing results for the Champions League-winning side under Dino Topppmöller. The 45-year-old will be replaced by the former Liverpool and Manchester City midfielder at the end of January.
Eintracht Frankfurt are already nine points behind sixth-placed Bayer Leverkusen, despite seven teams potentially representing Germany in European competitions. Heidenheim, who are currently at the bottom of the table, need to close the 10-point gap to avoid the relegation play-offs at the end of the season.
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Of Frankfurt’s injured list, Kan Uzun, Younis Ebnutalib and Michy Batshuayi are set to return. However, neither will be an option for Saturday’s game. This could be the first game the Conte brothers – Thurold and Christian – start together after impressive performances in recent weeks.
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Predicted lineup
Frankfurt: Zeitler; Brown, Armenda, Koch©, Collins; Larsson; Kalimuendo, Chaibi, Höjlund, Bahoya; Burkat
Heidenheim: Ramadje; Traoré, Mainka ©, Gimber, Behrens, Schöppner; Kerber, Dinkci, S. Conteh, C. Conteh; Zivrzyvadze
