Eintracht Frankfurt survived a dramatic late surge from Borussia Mönchengladbach to claim a remarkable 6-4 victory, in a match where the visitors stormed into a 6-0 lead before nearly letting it slip.
Borussia Mönchengladbach 4-6 Eintracht Frankfurt
Goals: 0-1 Koch 11’ (Chaïbi), 0-2 Knauff 15’ (Dōan), 0-3 Burkardt 35’ (Uzun), 0-4 Chaïbi 39’ (Dōan), 0-5 Uzun 45’+1 (Chaïbi), 0-6 Koch 47’ (Brown), 1-6 Castrop 72’ (Scally), 2-6 Tabaković 78’ (Netz), 3-6 Engelhardt 83’ (Tabaković), 4-6 Ranos 90’+9 (Scally).
Frankfurt arrived at Borussia-Park desperate to end a run of back-to-back league defeats, while interim boss Eugen Polanski was still chasing his first Bundesliga win in charge of Gladbach.
Frankfurt’s ruthless first half
The visitors flew out of the blocks, pressing high and pinning Gladbach deep inside their own half. Their intensity brought reward on 11 minutes, as Robin Koch bundled home a Farès Chaïbi corner to open the scoring.
Four minutes later, Ansgar Knauff capitalised on a clever pass from Ritsu Dōan, slotting coolly past Moritz Nicolas to double the lead.
Gladbach had no response, and Frankfurt piled on the misery. Jonathan Burkardt made it three after combining with Can Uzun in the 35th minute, before Chaïbi swept home Dōan’s low delivery just four minutes later.
Uzun then added a spectacular fifth on the stroke of half-time, rifling into the top corner from a tight angle after a sublime backheel assist from Chaïbi, sealing a breathtaking first-half display.
Gladbach score four consolation goals
The rout appeared set to continue in the second half when Koch made it 6-0 just two minutes after the restart as the centre-back bagged a rare double.
Frankfurt then took their foot off the gas completely, allowing the hosts to gradually gain a foothold, with Jens Castrop heading home from Joe Scally’s cross in the 72nd minute to give the home fans something to cheer about.
Six minutes later, Haris Tabaković added a second for Gladbach, powering in a header from Luca Netz’s delivery. The Foals continued to press forward, and in the 83rd minute, Yannik Engelhardt made it 6-3 with a close-range finish. Grant-Leon Ranos then headed home in the 99th minute to add further respectability to the scoreline.
Despite the spirited second-half performance, Gladbach will end the weekend at the bottom of the table for the first time in 10 years.
