A clash between seventh and 14th place, which simultaneously touches on European hopes and relegation fears, awaits at Deutsche Bank Park when Eintracht Frankfurt hosts FC Augsburg on matchday 14 of the Bundesliga. Frankfurt are in seventh place with 21 points, just one point behind Stuttgart and already five ahead of Cologne, while Augsburg are 14th. That’s precisely why the current context is so explosive, as a home win would keep Frankfurt firmly in contention for European places and significantly exacerbate Augsburg’s relegation worries. Dino Toppmöller’s team comes into this match after an exhausting week, with a heavy 6-0 defeat in Leipzig and a narrow defeat in the Champions League in Barcelona interrupting an otherwise solid league run that was roughly in line with expectations. With Burkardt and now Batshuayi out of action, the attack is once again thinly stretched, which is why Wahi, Ngankam, and Uzun are particularly in focus, especially with nominations for the Africa Cup of Nations imminent for key players Skhiri and Chaibi. For Augsburg, this trip is also an early assessment for returning coach Manuel Baum, whose comeback began ideally with a controlled 2-0 home win against Leverkusen, exceeding expectations after a mixed league phase. Baum has already changed the captaincy and hinted at further adjustments, while striker Tietz is taking a back seat and possible appearances at the Africa Cup of Nations for Saad, Gharbi, and Essende are further complicating his winter planning.
- Venue: Deutsche Bank Park, Frankfurt
- Date and time: December 13, 2025, 3:30 p.m.
- Competition: Bundesliga (Matchday 14)
Overall, the evidence suggests that Frankfurt will win, with goals on both sides and a lively second half, because the statistics and history of this fixture point in that direction. The market rates Frankfurt to win at odds of 1.7 and clearly considers Augsburg to be the underdog at 4.3.
Frankfurt form & record check
Eintracht Frankfurt’s current form is difficult to interpret. They have lost only once in their last five Bundesliga games, but the 6-0 collapse in Leipzig and the 3-0 home defeat to Atalanta frame this phase as a possible crisis. The recent 2-1 win in Barcelona, on the other hand, looked more stable and is seen within the club as a performance that restored some confidence, even if their Champions League prospects are now minimal. Across all competitions, a clear pattern emerges, as Frankfurt have conceded goals in each of their last five games and suffered further damage after the break, failing to win any of those second halves and conceding at least two goals in each of those games. Toppmöller has responded by showing clear confidence in Zetterer in goal, hoping to bring more calm to an often tense defense. In attack, the picture is mixed. The wild 4-3 win in Cologne and Batshuayi’s late penalty against Wolfsburg showed that this team can still deliver bursts of goal threat, but the heavy defeats in Leipzig and against Atalanta underlined how quickly they can lose structure. With Burkardt and Batshuayi injured, more responsibility falls on Wahi, Ngankam, and the creative axis of Chaïbi and Götze. Frankfurt are seventh in the table with 21 points, just one point behind Stuttgart and already five points ahead of Cologne, which keeps them firmly in the fight for Europe despite a negative goal difference. Off the pitch, the dismissal of the team doctor and a series of muscle injuries to players such as Kristensen, Højlund, Larsson, Uzun, and Burkardt reinforce the impression that consistency, not quality, is the core problem.
Our predicted Eintracht lineup is likely to remain a 4-2-3-1 under Toppmöller for this game. Zetterer should start in goal again, in line with the coach’s recent comments, in front of a back four of Kristensen, Koch, Theate, and Brown. Skhiri and Larsson are expected to anchor the midfield, covering the center and allowing the fullbacks to join in the attack when spaces open up. Further forward, we expect Doan on the right and Chaïbi on the left, with Götze operating centrally as a link-up player behind Wahi. With Burkardt and Batshuayi both out injured, Wahi is our predicted lone striker, while Ngankam is considered the first option off the bench. Tactically, this would correspond to Eintracht’s usual system, compact without the ball and mobile between the lines.
Augsburg Form & Record Check
FC Augsburg’s form in the league remains volatile. They are in 14th place in the table with 13 points and a goal difference of minus 10, between Hamburger SV with just a few more points and Wolfsburg, who are only one point behind. Two wins and three defeats in their last five Bundesliga games suggest a team that can react but is not yet playing consistently reliably. In terms of performance, the past two weeks have been a microcosm of their season, with a mature 2-0 home win against Leverkusen under returning coach Baum, Giannoulis and Kade scoring early and the team defending compactly thereafter. However, this success followed a limp 3-0 defeat at Hoffenheim and came shortly after a narrow 1-0 home defeat to Dortmund that exposed their ongoing offensive problems. In between, there was a tough 1-0 win against Hamburg and a 3-2 defeat in Stuttgart, where bright spells in attack were undermined by sloppy defending. There have been no draws in their last five league games, and the second halves tend to be low-scoring, meaning games are often decided early on, which could indicate that Augsburg struggles to change the course of games once a rhythm has been established. Baum needs to stabilize a defense that is missing the injured Gouweleeuw and continues to look vulnerable, especially away from home. His early change of captain underscores his attempt to reorganize the hierarchy. In attack, he is working with changing resources, as Tietz is out and a departure in the winter seems likely, while Essende, Saad, and Gharbi will soon be missing for the Africa Cup of Nations, which will further test the fragile upturn.
Under Baum, FC Augsburg are likely to stick with a 3-4-2-1 formation, with Dahmen in goal behind a back three of Matsima, Schlotterbeck, and Banks. Fellhauer and Giannoulis are likely to operate as aggressive wingbacks, while Jakic and Massengo form a combative double pivot. Rieder and Claude-Maurice are planned as free tens behind Kade, who could once again take the lead. In view of Gouweleeuw’s ligament injury, the experienced organizer is still out, so Schlotterbeck will probably take on more responsibility in the central structure. It is also possible that call-ups for the Africa Cup of Nations will thin out the attacking rotation, as Saad, Gharbi, and Essende are with their national teams. In this scenario, our predicted bench relies on Maier, Rexhbecaj, and Pedersen to change the pace.
Frankfurt – Augsburg Head-to-head comparison & statistics
In the last five Bundesliga matches between Eintracht Frankfurt and FC Augsburg, the record is completely even, with one win each and three draws. The series runs from 2023 to April 2025, and no team has managed to win two games in a row during this period. The overall goal difference is slightly in Frankfurt’s favor, with seven goals scored and six conceded, which once again underlines the balance of this pairing. To put this into context, Frankfurt’s only win during this period came at home in 2024 with a 3-1 victory, while Augsburg’s only win came at home in 2023 with a 2-1 victory. In the three encounters in Frankfurt, the hosts remained undefeated with one win and two draws, meaning that Augsburg failed to win any of these five away games. Draws are a constant theme, with three in five encounters, and both of the most recent duels ended in draws: in December 2024, there was a 2-2 draw in Frankfurt, then April 2025 brought a goalless 0-0 draw in Augsburg. Interestingly, in all five games, there were fewer than 1.5 goals in the first half, so the matches usually started cautiously and tended to liven up after the break. In four of the five games, both teams scored and the match ended with at least two goals, with only the 0-0 draw in April 2025 breaking this pattern, which illustrates how rare it is for the defenses to keep a clean sheet in this duel and how often marginal details rather than clear superiority decide the outcome.
