Spoil sports

As the Bundesliga reaches the business end of the season, all eyes are on the tussles at the top between the three main contenders for the title. Bayern Munich, Schalke 04 and Bayer Leverkusen have been swapping positions at the summit for most of the campaign and their fortunes in the coming weeks will determine the championship shield's summer home.

If this season's title race was a Hollywood film, Bayern, Schalke and Leverkusen would be the big names on the poster. They're the stars, the matinee idols with pulling power. But a couple lines down, in the small print, would be the name of an actor whose cameo appearance alters the whole narrative of the film. Near the end of the main credits it might read. “And featuring Eintracht Frankfurt as the Championship Spoiler.”

As Bayern Munich found out last weekend, Eintracht may not be invited to the Bundesliga's premiere party but it can crash it all the same.

A team that currently lies in eighth and that has maintained an unremarkable mid-table position throughout the season, Frankfurt were nobody's favorite to slam the brakes on Bayern's charge to the top of the league. And yet Frankfurt sprang the surprise of the weekend with two late goals against a tiring Munich side who went to sleep with a 1-0 lead to defend. The final 2-1 scoreline ended Bayern's winning streak and gave the Bavarians a dose of reality.

Title contenders slip up on Eintracht's banana skin

Schalke can only be glad that their two games against Frankfurt are already history, with the Royal Blues beating Michael Skibbe's side in both games. While they still face tough challenges ahead, avoiding getting stung by Frankfurt won't be one of them.

Leverkusen are not so lucky. With their own Bundesliga challenge wobbling, Leverkusen must face Frankfurt in two weeks time. Leverkusen comprehensively thrashed Frankfurt 4-0 at home earlier in the season but a defeat or draw away to Eintracht could land a damaging blow to the team's title hopes for another season.

Frankfurt have already confounded a string of teams who were pre-season hopefuls for the championship - but who have seen those dreams extinguished.

Werder Bremen lost to Eintracht twice; Borussia Dortmund came away from Frankfurt with a draw and were beaten 3-2 at home; Hamburg were able to earn just a point in both games against them. It seems that Frankfurt have no respect for reputations and have been in no mood to aid in anyone's bid to become German champions.

Skibbe's desire mirrored in Frankfurt's motivation

"I think a major reason why the team is able to raise their game against the big boys is because of their coach," German soccer expert and author David Hein told Deutsche Welle. "Skibbe left Leverkusen under a cloud after dropping to seventh from fourth on the final day of the 2007-08 season. I think a huge reason for Frankfurt's record against the big guys is Skibbe's motivation rubbing off on his troops. I think he has some scores to settle."

Skibbe's own determination to succeed can certainly be seen mirrored in players such as Maik Franz, Patrick Ochs and the Brazilian Chris. These combative defenders make a formidable line across the back in front of Oka Nikolov, Frankfurt's ever-steady keeper.

However, while this defensive unit has frustrated the Bundesliga big guns this season, the team's main problem is in attack, where they lack the elite players to take the game to the opposition. Most of Frankfurt's victories against big clubs have come from opportunistic situations or major lapses in the opposition's defense rather from openings crafted by skill.

Team lacks quality to maintain efforts against lower teams

While headline grabbing wins against the likes of Bayern Munich shine a fleetingly positive light on Frankfurt, the team's frailties have been regularly exposed against lesser opposition, suggesting that Frankfurt can only muster the necessary gumption and quality in games against top teams.

"I think the team really wants to raise its level to Skibbe's in the big games - and have done so - but lack the general skill to keep it up against lower opponents," Hein said. "In addition, there is always a motivation for players to get big results against the big, big teams. In a way, it's also an audition. You play well against the likes of Bayern, Schalke and Hamburg, and not only do those teams see you, but also scouts from other German clubs and foreign teams who watch the big German clubs in action."

Investment needed, but not without a fight

Frankfurt may be set up to spoil the championship party, but for the team to actually get closer to adding to its own solitary title, won way back in 1959, it is going to have to change the attitudes of the players from one where they feel they are performing in a shop window to one where they are playing for a club that can win trophies. For that to happen, Frankfurt needs to invest.

"If Skibbe sticks around, he'll try and bring in a couple of better strikers in the off-season," Hein said. "The coach may look to poach players from the relegated clubs, like Theofanis Gekas from Hertha Berlin, who played for Skibbe at Leverkusen, or guys who have something to prove like Mike Hanke or Jan Schlaudraff from Hannover. He may look to players like Bochum's Stanislav Sestak or Nuremberg's Angelos Charisteas. Frankfurt need strikers if they're to win not only against the big teams but against minnows too."

Fulfilling all this ambition will, of course, require money. And Skibbe has been locked in a low-level war of words with club chairman Heribert Bruchhagen all season over how wide the boss has been willing to open up the purse strings.

Skibbe was able to prise Halil Altintop away from Schalke during the winter break, but it was on a cut-price loan deal - and the coach has since stated publicly that he needs more cash to improve the squad. Bruchhagen, whose efforts to stabilize the club's finances over the past decade have been a notable success, remains adamant that the club should spend conservatively in order to stay solvent.

But a run of wins to close out the season could strengthen Skibbe's hand with the fans - or even put Eintracht in Europe. And that would put a little pocket money at Skibbe's disposal.

Author: Nick Amies
Editor: Matt Hermann