Will the magical SGE conquer London on Thursday evening?
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club has exactly one more chance this season to qualify for the 2025/26 European Cup after all. However, due to their disappointing performances at the domestic level, they need nothing less than to triumph in the Europa League. Even in the last eight, however, the Londoners face a complicated task.
After all, they are facing the 2022 title holders, who usually reach top form when the floodlights come on and the EL anthem sounds on Thursday evenings. The fact that the betting odds are significantly higher on the Bundesliga side ahead of Tottenham’s first leg against Frankfurt could even play into Eintracht’s hands.
The fact is that the Hessians feel comfortable in the role of the underdog and could sometimes benefit from the fact that the home side of Coach Ange Postecoglou have been struggling with defensive deficits throughout the entire season. Nevertheless, the high-quality offensive line-up around ex-Bundesliga star Heung-Min Son is, of course, always in a position to create chances and to convert them. In view of this, a prediction of over-goals between Tottenham and Frankfurt is inevitable.
Tottenham – Statistics & current form
In the Premier League, Tottenham Hotspur Football Club is having a season to forget. The fifth-placed team from last season currently has just 37 points after 31 match days. With a record of eleven wins, four draws and 16 defeats, they are disappointingly ranked only 14th. Only the clubs in 17th to 20th place have conceded more goals than the Londoners, for whom the train to the international places has long since left.
Tottenham and over-scoring are usually a good combination
This endeavor is problematic, however, given that the Lilywhites have had something of a quarter-final curse in European competitions for decades. In fact, they have only won one of their last 13 European quarter-finals (1-6-6). Incidentally, the club from the capital city is back in an international quarter-final for the first time since 2018/19.
On the way there, however, the team of coach Postecoglou did not always cover itself in glory. Although they finished the eight-match league phase with a 5-2-1 record in fourth place, the Londoners struggled more than desired against AZ Alkmaar in the last sixteen. However, a 0-1 defeat in the Netherlands was followed by a 3-1 win at home that meant they progressed. Incidentally, this victory in mid-March was only one of two complete success stories in the last seven competitive games.
Although it is to be assumed that the increasingly criticized head coach will send his best eleven onto the pitch on Thursday evening, I see no value in making a prediction for a home win before Tottenham’s first leg against Frankfurt. The previous performances this season have been too inconsistent. The odds distribution in the three-way market is too one-sided. However, it might be more interesting to bet on whether there will be one or two goals in the game. In four of five home games and in seven of the ten EL matches involving Spurs, the Over 2.5 would have gone through.
Frankfurt – Statistics & current form
On Saturday evening, after the 2-0 away defeat in Bremen, sporting director Markus Krösche attested that his Eintracht probably put in their weakest performance of the season. The eagle bearers missed the opportunity to take advantage of the slip-ups of their direct competitors from Mainz or Freiburg and take a further step towards a top-four finish. The gap between third and fifth place is three points. The rest of the program also looks very complicated. Especially if the 2022 Europa League champion continues to struggle with the double burden…
Frankfurt and the Europa League – that’s a perfect fit!
However, a negative connotation in connection with the Europa League is not welcome in the Main metropolis, because for years the successor competition to the UEFA Cup has been the absolute favorite competition of the SGE. In fact, the black, red and white have only lost two of the past 23 matches in the Europa League (14-7-2). In the current season, Dino Toppmöller’s team has recorded seven wins from ten matches. Among other things, the club from Hesse confidently beat Ajax Amsterdam (2-1, 4-1) in the last sixteen.
If, in view of this proven love for the Europa League, you want to bet on Eintracht’s chances of reaching the semi-finals at odds of up to 2.15 in the run-up to the first leg of Tottenham v Frankfurt, you can also use one of the many free bets without a deposit. For example, with the code “Brutal10” you can get a €10 free bet at Winamax. This can easily be collected in addition to the Winamax bonus on the first deposit.
Apart from that, Hugo Ekitike and Co. also provide sufficient arguments to consider the betting odds on over-goals between Tottenham and Frankfurt. On the one hand, the SGE have already scored 20 goals in ten EL matches. On the other hand, in four out of five away matches, Over 2.5 would have been crowned with success. In turn, in seven out of ten matches, at least one goal was scored in both halves, which I also expect for Thursday’s first leg.
Despite their somewhat bumpy form in the league, the guests from the Main will not hide on the Thames and instead will repeatedly look for their chance through quick transitions. With the very fast forwards and the vertical play preferred by Coach Toppmöller, the matchup seems to suit the Bundesliga third perfectly. The double chance X2 can therefore also be recommended.
Tottenham – Frankfurt Direct comparison / H2H record
The first two meetings in the 1981/82 European Cup Winners’ Cup, both of which ended in home wins, can be safely ignored in the H2h analysis. It is more exciting that the teams faced each other in the 2022/23 Champions League group stage. There was a 0-0 draw at Deutsche Bank Park in Frankfurt. The return leg in London was much more spectacular, with Spurs running out 3-2 winners.
Tottenham – Frankfurt prediction
A total of three German teams are still in the European Cup. The only German Europa League representative comes from Frankfurt and is once again preparing to achieve something historic. Traditionally, the quarter-finals present a particularly high hurdle, because in the 2021/22 and 2018/19 title seasons, the eagle bearers had to struggle especially in the first leg of the round of last eight. Both in 2019 against Benfica Lisbon (2-4) and three years later in Barcelona (1-1), Eintracht were unable to win and still reached the semi-finals! I expect the same this time, although Tottenham will/wants to show a different face than in the completely messed-up PL season.
Although I think the third-placed team in the Bundesliga is capable of at least a draw in the English capital, I am avoiding the big risk in my primary Tottenham vs. Frankfurt tip. Instead, I am assuming that at least one goal will be scored in both halves.
Both teams have their strengths clearly in offense and their weaknesses in defending. The previous results in the Europa League have impressively underlined this. A goal-filled evening in London is likely to happen. For the mentioned bet, there is a 1.53 at Betano, which is worth a stake of seven units to me.