Eintracht Frankfurt have made their best start to a Bundesliga season since 1991-92, sitting just a point behind the pair of Bayern Munich and RB Leipzig. But what is more remarkable is how they’ve done it.
Dino Toppmöller, Eintracht Frankfurt’s head coach in charge for his second season at Deutsche Bank Park, mentioned two things following his side’s dramatic 3-3 draw with Bayern Munich prior to the international break.
Firstly, he talked about how his side had to “suffer” against Vincent Kompany’s men. They did just that, seeing 25.9% of the ball and posting a significantly inferior expected goals total come full-time (1.21 vs. 2.18).
Secondly, and perhaps most importantly, he praised his side’s quality in transition, highlighting the “quality and pace” of their counter-attacks, with two of their three goals coming from fast breaks. It’s something Frankfurt have leaned into heavily this season, and they are reaping the rewards.
Across Europe’s big five leagues, Frankfurt are joint-top for fast breaks (18), second for shots following fast breaks (14), and joint-top for goals following fast breaks (5), with their 3-3 draw with the 33-time Bundesliga winners encapsulating what they’ve been doing well so far this season, and how they’ve developed under Toppmöller in his second season.
The difference in their change of style from 2023-24 to 2024-25 is visible from the below sequence graphics. These graphs plot a team’s style and where they fall on the spectrum between being slow and intricate in possession – a style that most of the so-called ‘big’ teams have adopted – and those who play faster and more direct.
What’s strange about this is where Frankfurt sit relative to other sides who have made strong starts to their league campaigns in Europe.
The collection of teams in the bottom right of the graph are, on the whole, the usual suspects when it comes to challenging for the big prizes over the course of a season, whether that be domestic titles or European honours. It’s not a hard and fast rule, but possession has become proxy for dominance and game management, helping teams to mitigate factors outside their control. Possession is not a causal factor for success, but it often accompanies it.
Frankfurt are very much not in that quadrant.
Among the 25 sides that are averaging 1.8 points per game or more this season in Europe’s top five leagues, Toppmöller’s side rank bottom for metrics like possession (38.4%), field tilt (30%), and how deep they start their open-play sequences (38m from their own goal-line), while only Union Berlin (5.3) average fewer 10+ open-play passing sequences per game than Frankfurt’s 6.7.
Prior to the Bayern Munich game they had an overall possession start distance of 40m and averaged 41% possession, so even a clash against a heavyweight in their league didn’t heavily skew their stylistic numbers.
Conversely, among that same group of teams, they lead the way for direct attack goals per game (0.5) and are third for direct attacks per game (2.7) behind only Paris Saint-Germain and Monaco (both 3). It’s in transition where they are most deadly.
That’s not to say Frankfurt aren’t a side who don’t look to press and win the ball back high up the pitch; they can be seen parked on the edge of the opposition’s box from goal-kicks in a press led by Omar Marmoush and Hugo Ekitiké, with a midfield quartet behind.
They choose their moments though – only Reims (4.4) and Udinese (5.1) average fewer high turnovers per game among those averaging at least 1.80 points per game this term than Frankfurt (5.2).
Starting their sequences close to their own goal might suggest they’re a side willing to sit deep, but they often start deep intentionally to lure the opposition into a press before they spring forward quickly.
For example, on goal-kicks Hugo Larsson and Ellyes Skhiri both come short to provide cover should the ball be turned over, but Frankfurt use them as a way to manufacture moments of transition.
The third goal of their 3-1 win against Hoffenheim on Matchday 2 was a fine example of this, as Kevin Trapp’s short goal-kick brought the opposition forward. Trapp in turn found Ekitiké before Marmoush finished off the move not long after. They scored a similar goal in their 2-1 win at Wolfsburg on MD 3.
Playing like that does come with its risks. Frankfurt lead the Bundesliga for shot-ending high turnovers faced (10) and are perhaps lucky they’ve not conceded from one yet.
As with many decisions in football, Toppmöller perceives the reward to outweigh the obvious risk, and so far this season at least, he is being proven right.
Defensively too, in what has been a settled quartet of Rasmus Kristensen, Tuta – one of their few survivors from their 2021-22 UEFA Europa League triumph – Robin Koch and new signing Arthur Theate on an initial loan with an option to buy from Rennes, they’ve been solid, whether that be as a back four or variations of a back three/five.
As a team, they’ve made more defensive actions than any other Bundesliga side in 2024-25 (520), with Koch (20), Tuta (18) and Theate (17) making up three of the seven players in the league this term to make at least 17 headed clearances. Kristensen, the defender with the most license to get forward, has won possession in the defensive third the fourth-most this season (18).
Frankfurt have clearly settled into a side comfortable seeing little of the ball. Four of their six league games this season have seen them have 40% of the ball or less, but it’s a trade-off that Frankfurt are seemingly comfortable with, especially with the burgeoning partnership that has helped shape their fine start to 2024-25.
Frankfurt don’t just go against the grain in terms of their willingness to cede possession, but they are also one of the few sides in Europe who play with two genuine strikers in Marmoush and Ekitiké. That duo showed signs of promise at the backend of 2023-24 and have now turned that into concrete results in 2024-25.
Having joined in January this year, initially on loan from PSG, Ekitiké has reminded everyone why there was such a clamour for his signature while he was a teenager at Reims.
The Frenchman is a great out ball for Frankfurt, both with his excellent hold-up play and ability to win his fair share of aerial duels, and skill with the ball at his feet. Only Florian Wirtz has attempted (37) and completed (18) more dribbles in the Bundesliga this season than Ekitiké (33 and 16), and the loanee offers a deft and capable touch to help link play for Frankfurt.
After finishing last season with four goals and an assist in his final five games, Ekitiké already has two goals and two assists this season.
He’s also beginning to strike up a devastating partnership with arguably the Bundesliga’s best player this season in Marmoush, who has benefitted hugely from Frankfurt’s style of play.
In Europe’s top five leagues this season, only five duos have combined to create more chances for each other than their 10, three of which have resulted in goals. Only Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka, Nicolas Jackson and Cole Palmer, and Noni Madueke and Palmer have combined for more (all 4).
Against Bayern, after Farès Chaïbi eventually found Marmoush on the left-hand side – a position he tends to favour – his pace and strength proved too much for Dayot Upamecano, before the Egyptian found Ekitiké in space who calmly finished past Manuel Neuer.
Ekitiké’s ability to drop deep, provide a target and even spin in behind of his own accord has been a real benefit to Marmoush, whose start to the season has been nothing short of sensational. Only Robert Lewandowski and Erling Haaland (both 10) have more goals in Europe’s top five leagues than his eight. Including four assists, no player has more goal involvements than his 12.
Prolific and creative, Marmoush has been a menace to Bundesliga defences. Drifting out wide on the left means he’s been able to use his speed and dribbling ability to stand up, then subsequently go past defenders. He’s also just as comfortable coming short to receive the ball, before turning and causing havoc as he drives towards the opposition’s goal.
Maintaining what has been a strong start to the season will arguably determine how far Frankfurt are able to go this campaign. In Europe’s top five leagues, only Marcus Thuram (+4.4) has overperformed his expected goals total by a greater margin than Marmoush (+3.95, xG of 4.05), although it does help that he offers a creative outlet on top of a goalscoring one, already creating 10 chances from open play in the league this term, as well as being a set-piece taker for the club.
What Toppmöller has assembled in little over a season has been impressive, especially considering his sides have had the second youngest average age of starting XIs in 2023-24 (25 years, 287 days) and in 2024-25 (25 years, 125 days) thanks to the development of the likes of Kauã Santos, Jean-Mattéo Bahoya and Junior Dina Ebimbe.
That said, the question remains surrounding what the former assistant of Julian Nagelsmann could achieve come the end of the campaign.
While his team are averaging 2.08 expected goals per game this season, they are conceding the second-most expected goals against per game among those aforementioned 25 sides with 1.80 PPG or more (1.55), which likely isn’t sustainable long-term if they want to garner domestic success. Opta’s expected points model, albeit from a small sample size, has Frankfurt sixth based on what has gone so far this season, with Bayern Munich first.
Looking back at title winners in Europe’s top five leagues since 2012-13 – the first season post-Pep Guardiola at Barcelona and the influence that had on the game – only two sides have won a league title with below 50% possession; Leicester City in 2015-16 (42.4%) and Atlético Madrid in 2013-14 (48.7%).
The next three on that list are Monaco in 2016-17 (51.2%), Internazionale and Atlético Madrid both in 2020-21 (52%). Since 2014-15, only Leicester (2.8) and Monaco (7.7) have averaged fewer than 10 open-play passing sequences per game and lifted the league title come the end of the season.
With three of their next four league games against Bayer Leverkusen, Union Berlin and Stuttgart, how Frankfurt come out of those fixtures will perhaps give us a better understanding of what to expect from them.
And even if it doesn’t result in domestic silverware, their young squad is certainly well placed to match their achievements of 2021-22 when it comes the UEFA Europa League. Opta’s Europa League predictor has them as one of nine sides with a 10% chance or greater of reaching this season’s final at the Estadio de San Mamés.
Whatever lies ahead for Eintracht Frankfurt between now and the end of the season, Toppmöller’s side have not been shy in establishing what they are, and looks set to be an enjoyable alternative to the now-standard diet of possession-dominant sides.
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