Frankfurt power to comfortable 3-1 Bundesliga win over Holstein Kiel

Eintracht Frankfurt secured a commanding 3-1 victory over Holstein Kiel at home on Sunday, reinforcing their position in third place in the Bundesliga.

Goals from Hugo Larsson, Tuta and Can Uzun saw Frankfurt extend their lead, while Kiel's Finn Porath scored a late consolation.

Larsson opened the scoring in the 18th minute with a well-placed header from a Nathaniel Brown cross. Tuta doubled Frankfurt's lead in the 37th minute, capitalising on a poor clearance by Kiel to put the hosts 2-0 up.

Shortly before halftime, Frankfurt's Hugo Ekitike won a penalty, but Kiel's goalkeeper, Thomas Daehne, denied him, guessing right to save Ekitike's effort.

In the 60th minute, Uzun sealed the win for Frankfurt by capitalising on another Kiel mistake and finishing coolly past Daehne. Kiel did pull one back in the 73rd minute when Porath scored after Kevin Trapp had saved his two earlier attempts.

Ekitike's frustrating day continued when he had a well-executed solo goal ruled out for offside. Despite the frustration, the win moved Frankfurt five points clear of fourth-placed RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga standings, with 22 matches played.

Frankfurt are now on course to qualify for the Champions League for only the second time in their history, after their previous appearance following their 2022 Europa League triumph.

Goalkeeper Trapp remained focused, stating, "Right now, things look pretty nice in the table but what matters more is how things look on the 34th matchday."

Looking ahead to their upcoming matches, including a tough away trip to Bayern Munich and a home game against Bayer Leverkusen, Trapp added, "We know how difficult it is in Munich, but we won’t hide. After that, we’ve got the defending German champions – we won’t be hiding for that one either."

Meanwhile, Hoffenheim took a significant step away from the relegation zone with a 3-1 win over Werder Bremen, thanks to goals from Anton Stach, Tom Bischof and Gift Orban. Hoffenheim now sit seven points clear of the relegation playoff spot, with Heidenheim still to play.