Wolfsburg vs Eintracht Frankfurt

August 15, 2015
By: Nemanja Lazarevic

Buoyed by the German Super Cup triumph over mighty Bayern Munich, Wolfsburg will be looking to kick off the new Bundesliga campaign with a win as well. Their opponents Eintracht Frankfurt enjoyed an easy win over minnows Bramer in the DFB Pokal, but they face a much tougher task at Volkswagen Arena.

Will De Bruyne leave?

Wolfsburg enjoyed plenty of success last season, finishing the league campaign just ten points behind red-hot Bayern Munich, while lifting the DFB Pokal by defeating Borussia Dortmund in the final. Having kept the entire team together, while adding the likes of Carlos Ascues, Francisco Rodriguez and Max Kruse to their ranks, the Wolves have big ambitions this season, and they have already managed to prove they will be a tough nut to crack. Wolfsburg produced a major coup by pipping the Bavarians to the German Super Cup trophy, with Nicklas Bendtner proving an unlikely hero, scoring a late equalizer before converting the decisive penalty. And while doubts remain over the future of Kevin De Bruyne and Ivan Perisic, the team do not appear to be affected by the transfer speculation, with 4-1 Cup win over Stuttgarter Kickers the perfect proof. With that in mind, the Wolves can be trusted to extend the bright run of results against average Eintracht side as they will definitely want to push Bayern all the way in Bundesliga this term.

Luiz Gustavo should return to the side, but Andre Schurrle, Diego Benaglio and Felipe Lopes remain on the sidelines.

Top-half finish last season

Eintracht Frankfurt are slowly establishing themselves as genuine mid table side in German Bundesliga as they have been there or thereabouts in each of the three campaigns since they returned to the top flight. The Eagles did fairly well last term, finishing the league championship in ninth place, but it won’t be easy for them to repeat that result. The club stayed without two important players this summer with Kevin Trapp and Lucas Piazon both leaving, while the likes of Stefan Reinartz, Luc Castaignos, David Abraham and Lucas Hradecky all joined. Eintracht achieved mixed results in pre-season, defeating Leeds United and Tokyo while losing to Fulham and Hidenheim, but they did start the new season well, beating lower division side Bremer at the start of their DFB Pokal campaign. Nevertheless, Eintracht are now set to face one of Germany’s top teams away from home, so I don’t think they can extend the promising run of results, even if they are almost certain to adopt a defence-minded approach.

Marc Stendera is doubtful through a thigh injury, while Alexander Meier, Anderson Bamba and Sonny Kittel are definitely out.

Verdict

Wolfsburg started the season strongly, beating Bayern Munich to the German Super Cup trophy, and they can be trusted to record a comfortable win over Eintracht Frankfurt. The Eagles clearly lack the quality to match Germany’s top sides and I cannot see them getting anything from Volkswagen Arena.

Top pick: Home win   1.50 (1/2) @ Betfred

Alternative pick 1: Wolfsburg/Wolfsburg   2.35 (27/20) @ 888sport

Alternative pick 2: Wolfsburg -1.5 AH   2.33 (4/3) @ Unibet

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