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Live Commentary: Eintracht Frankfurt 0-0 Borussia Monchengladbach - as it happened

Follow Sports Mole's live text coverage of the Bundesliga clash between Eintracht Frankfurt and Borussia Monchengladbach.
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Eintracht Frankfurt and Borussia Monchengladbach played out a goalless draw in an entertaining Bundesliga clash at the Commerzbank Arena.

Both sides had good chances to break the deadlock, with Patrick Herrmann going close for the visitors in the first half either side of opportunities for Haris Seferovic at the other end.

Gladbach almost snatched the win in stoppage time, but Kevin Trapp denied Thorgan Hazard to ensure that the points were shared.

Read below to find out how the action unfolded.


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Good evening everyone. Another Bundesliga weekend begins tonight as Eintracht Frankfurt hosts Borussia Monchengladbach in a match which sees both sides looking to boost their respective bids to qualify for European football. Can Frankfurt stop the in-form Monchengladbach? Find out with me over the next couple of hours.

With just six games remaining in the season, these two sides still have plenty to play for. Frankfurt are currently in eighth, but with just four points separating them and sixth-placed Augsburg, they can pile the pressure on their rivals in the hunt for Europa League qualification. Without a win in three, Thomas Schaaf is desperate to see his side get back to their best.

There's not many teams in Germany playing football like Gladbach at the moment. Lucien Favre's side have delighted fans with their exciting attacking approach, and they head into this game on the back of a four-game winning run. They currently sit third, two points ahead of Bayer Leverkusen, and they will be keen to hold onto that position to avoid having to go through the Champions League qualifying round.

FRANKFURT: Trapp, Ignjovski, Madlung, Anderson, Oczipka, Hasebe, Medojevic, Kittel, Aigner, Valdez, Seferovic

Frankfurt were dealt a big blow earlier this week with the news that the Bundesliga's top scorer Alexander Meier would miss the rest of the season with a knee injury. There is better news tonight as Stefan Aigner returns in midfield, but Carlos Zambrano and Marco Russ miss out.

GLADBACH: Sommer, Jantschke, Brouwers, Dominguez, Wendt, Kramer, Xhaka, Herrmann, Johnson, Raffael, Kruse

Christoph Kramer is back from suspension to replace Havard Nordtveit in midfield for the visitors, but Thorgan Hazard is forced to settle for a spot on the bench as Patrick Herrmann and Fabian Johnson are selected to provide support for the Raffael and Max Kruse.


Frankfurt triumphed in the reverse fixture back in November by beating Gladbach 3-1 with goals from Marc Stendera, Meier and Takashi Inui. It's a huge blow to lose Meier, who has given defenders nightmares all season. There's extra pressure on Haris Seferovic to find the goals late in the season, but it's hold up play which can bring the best out of his teammates.

KEY MAN: Patrick Herrmann has been the key man for a Gladbach side packed with attacking talent, and he's already scored a career-high 10 Bundesliga goals. He's a creator and a goalscoring threat on his own, and when Gladbach counter, it's usually the attacking midfielder who has the ball at his feet. Frankfurt can't afford to let him drop into space when he cuts in from the wing.


PREDICTION: Here we go then. The players are in the tunnel at the Commerzbank Arena, and we're just a few handshakes away from the action. My tip tonight? Gladbach to win 3-1.

Frankfurt will get the game underway!

CHANCE! Great start from the hosts as a long ball finds Sefrovic, who takes a touch before firing a volley over from a tight angle. That's an early warning to the visiting defence.

Gladbach win the first corner of the night following some good work from Herrmann. It's taken short, but the opportunity is wasted when Kruse sends a deep cross straight into Trapp's hands.

Gladbach have settled well after that early scare. Both Johnson and Herrmann have been involved, and Raffael's movement is causing a few problems for the hosts.

Kruse has not been content with holding his position in the middle, and his clever run into the left side of the box allows him to collect a long ball before clipping a cross which Trapp comes off his line to collect.

YELLOW CARD! Wendt picks up an early booking for a trip on Aigner, who had timed his run to perfection to run onto a through ball on the right wing. Gladbach manage to clear the danger from the free kick which follows.

YELLOW CARD! Gladbach's players are not happy, and you can understand their frustration after Anderson goes to ground to chop down Raffael in midfield. Poor challenge. Easy decision for the referee.

CHANCE! Gladbach come close to breaking the deadlock with a fantastic effort. Johnson does well to create space on the left wing before delivering a deep cross for Herrmann, whose volley is well-struck but straight at Trapp. It breaks loose to Herrmann, but he can only poke the rebound over the crossbar.

There's huge cheers from the travelling fans when Raffael fires home a lovely effort, but replays prove that he was offside when Xhaka had played the clever through ball. Good decision from the assistant referee.

Sommer reacts well to come off his line to collect a dangerous cross after Valdez had created space on the left wing. Gladbach are starting to take control, but Frankfurt are competing well so far.

CHANCE! What an opportunity for Frankfurt. They break up a Gladbach attack in midfield before attacking at pace. Kittle receives the ball on the edge of the box and plays a clever pass to Seferovic, who sends a wild effort wide of the post.

Gladbach certainly look the better of the two sides in possession, but this approach seems to suit Frankfurt, who are defending deep and attacking at pace on the break. Both sides have had chances. The first goal could be vital.

CHANCE! Gladbach should be ahead. Wendt does brilliantly on the left as he exchanges passes with Johnson before breaking into space and pulling the ball back for the American, who somehow manages to fire wide from a great position

Poor from the hosts. They win the free kick in a promising position, but Hasebe's delivery fails to make it past the first defender. Frankfurt must make more of those opportunities.

Frankfurt breathe a huge sigh of relief when a late whistle eventually arrives after Kramer had sprinted clear of the last man. A replay proves that the midfielder had strayed into an offside position.

Neither manager will be completely satisfied, but I don't think they'll be too angry either. Gladbach haven't found their rhythm in the final third, despite creating a couple of good opportunites, while Frankfurt have looked dangerous when they've committed more men forward.

Gladbach come close once again as the visitors take a corner short to Xhaka, who delivers a brilliant cross to the front post. Kruse makes the right run, but he can't add the finishing touch.

SAVE! Sommer just seems to keep getting better. Valdez finds space between the two central defenders to meet a cross with a powerful header, but the Gladbach goalkeeper makes a stunning stop to tip the ball over.

Gladbach have taken a few risks with some needless passing in dangerous areas, but Franfkurt have been guilty of wasting possession when they do get numbers forward. There's not much to choose between the two sides at the moment.

Valdez has done very well so far tonight, and he threatens again by evading a couple of challenges on his way into the box before seeing a dangerous cross cleared by Dominguez.

Gladbach's decision to take another short corner almost comes back to haunt them as Frankfurt break with five players sprinting forward. Kittel ignores the options after collecting the ball on the edge of the box, and his powerful strike is impressively blocked by Jantschke.

CHANCE! Frankfurt threaten once again. A deep corner looks to be too strong for everyone until Aigner heads the ball back across the goal to Madlung, who nods the ball straight at Sommer. Decent chance for the hosts.

There's a break in play just before the interval when Valdez goes down after appearing to be fouled by Raffael. The referee missed the contact, but Valdez should be fine to continue.

HALF TIME: FRANKFURT 0-0 GLADBACH

Despite the scoreline, it's been a pretty entertaining 45 minutes at the Commerzbank Arena. Gladbach twice went close with chances for Herrmann and Johnson, but Frankfurt have looked much more confident tonight and they could have taken the lead had it not been for Sommer's superb stop to keep out a Valdez header. You'd expect there to be a breakthrough at some point.

Both managers will see room for improvement. Gladbach have allowed their attacks to slow down on too many occasions, and that certainly doesn't suit Johnson and Herrmann, who have looked dangerous when the ball has been moved out wide quickly. Patience is the key at the other end. Seferovic needs to hold the ball up better to bring his teammates into play.

BENCH WATCH: Changes in the final third could be a possibility for both sides. Hazard has found it difficult to hold down a place in the Gladbach side recently, but his pace and trickery could make the difference in the second half. The same could be said for Lucas Piazon, who might just have the quality that Frankfurt are missing in attack.

There's been plenty of activity during the interval. Is Favre thinking about a change? The substitutes have been busy over the last few minutes.

No changes at the break. Both sides are back out on the pitch. Gladbach will get the game back underway.

Not much to report early in the second half. Gladbach have sent a couple of long balls forward, but neither Kruse or Raffael have the pace to sprint clear of the home defence.

Excellent goalkeeping from Trapp as he sprints off his line to collect at the feet of Kramer, who had been played through by Wendt.

YELLOW CARD! Gladbach have stepped up the tempo once again, and Medojevic goes into the book for a late challenge on Kruse just as the visitors were threatening to launch an attack.

YELLOW CARD! Kruse is going to have some bruises later this evening. Oczipka is the latest name to go into the referee's book after chopping down the attacker.

Despite being pushed back by the visitors early on in the second half, Frankfurt have been sharper to the 50/50 balls in midfield and that's encouraging the home fans to get involved. A promising move breaks down when Wendt times his challenge on Aigner brilliantly.

Xhaka gets forward to collect the ball on the edge of the box, but he's pushed wide by the Frankfurt defence and his low effort drifts wide of the target.

Good goalkeeping from Sommer, who gets both hands to the ball when Oczipka targets the bottom corner with a powerful strike from 25 yards.

Oczipka delivers the ball into a good area from his free kick, but Valdez can only send a header a couple of yards wide of the target. No danger for Sommer on that occasion.

This has been a much better performance from Frankfurt, who seem to have found their confidence again. If anything, they're just lacking a bit of quality in the final third of the pitch, which is understandable with Meier on the sidelines. Gladbach need to raise their game.

Raffael and Medojevic compete for a bouncing ball in midfield, and it looks like the latter was caught high on the thigh, but I think he may have tweaked something in his groin, too. Frankfurt will be forced into a change.

SUBSTITUTION: It's Timothy Chandler who comes off the bench to replace Medojevic. This game needs an injection of creativity. Will Gladbach turn to Hazard soon?

It's not clicked for Gladbach in the second half. Another hopeful long ball forward evades Raffael and Trapp is off his line to collect. They need to get players closer to the forwards. This is a great chance for Frankfurt if they can take a few risks at the other end.

A corner gives a half chance to Madlung, who does well to connect with the header from the penalty spot but he can't keep the ball from creeping over.

CHANCE! The hosts will be furious with this miss. They break in numbers after winning the ball in midfield and Valdez times the pass well to find Aigner, who cuts inside onto his left foot before firing just wide from a great position in the box. He has to score.

It's been too slow from Gladbach in the second half. They appear eager to hit the hosts on the break, but Frankfurt are defending very impressively this evening. Time is running out.

SUBSTITUTION: It's a predictable change from Favre as Hazard comes off the bench to replace Raffael.

CHANCE! Another good opportunity falls to Aigner when Dominguez heads the ball straight to the midfielder, whose weak volley is easily collected by Sommer.

It's Frankfurt who are now dominating possession as we enter the closing stages of the game, but Gladbach are sitting deep to limit the space on offer. Valdez tries his luck with a shot from distance which is easy for Sommer to stop.

Great skill from Herrmann as he battles his way past a couple of challenges on the right. He attempts to lob the ball to Johnson at the back post, but Trapp manages to intercept.

SUBSTITUTIONS: Both managers make another change. Valdez has been battling with cramp in the last couple of minutes and he makes way for Lucas Piazon. Herrmann also comes off to be replaced by Ibrahima Traore.

Wendt has been fantastic for Gladbach tonight. He times his challenge to perfection to stop a dangerous run from Aigner, before displaying his strength to dispossess Piazon a few moments later.

Madlung is fortunate not to pick up a booking for arguing with the referee after being penalised for a foul on Jantschke at the back post. Sommer had made a pretty comfortable save from the tame volley anyway.

It's all been a bit sloppy from the visitors in the second half. Too many passes have been misplaced in the final third, and Hazard has found it very difficult to get involved since coming off the bench. Can either side find a late winner?

Gladbach resist the temptation to send too many players forward for a corner, but Dominguez manages to find space to meet the ball with a header which lands safely in Trapp's hands.

The fourth official confirms there will be just two minutes added on as Frankfurt waste a corner with a poor delivery from Kittel.

CHANCE! Gladbach almost snatch all three points in the final minute of stoppage time. Traore does well to get into the box before pulling the ball back for Hazard, whose effort is pushed away by Trapp.

FULL TIME: FRANKFURT 0-0 GLADBACH

It's all over at the Commerzbank Arena. Both sides had chances to win the game, and it's a surprise that neither attack managed to find a breakthrough but a draw as probably a fair result in the end. Gladbach now have a three-point advantage over fourth-placed Leverkusen, while Frankfurt are three points outside the Europa League places. That's all from me tonight. I hope you've enjoyed the coverage, goodnight!

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