Eintracht Frankfurt 1-3 Maniz 05: 10-man visitors pull off stunning victory to end Frankfurt's unbeaten home run
Eintracht Frankfurt's impressive 10-match unbeaten streak at home was unexpectedly halted by a 3-0 loss to 10-man FSV Mainz in the Bundesliga.
The match began with the hosts taking the initiative, but they found themselves trailing after just 15 minutes due to an extraordinary blunder by goalkeeper Kauã Santos, who gifted an early goal to the opposition.
Santos misjudged a pass intended for Ellyes Skhiri, forcing the midfielder to stretch for the ball, which then looped back toward the goal. Santos, seemingly uncertain about whether to play the ball with his hands, hesitated and ultimately panicked, resulting in him inadvertently punching the ball into his own net.
Shortly thereafter, Nadiem Amiri attempted to reciprocate the favor with a reckless challenge on Skhiri, earning himself a straight red card.
Despite being a man down, Mainz established a pattern of play that saw the hosts dominate possession.
However, they were caught off guard midway through the first half when a long ball found Paul Nebel, who took a speculative shot from distance.
The ball took a significant deflection, leaving Santos wrong-footed and allowing the visitors to double their advantage.
Frankfurt sought to respond before halftime and came close when Omar Marmoush found himself in a prime position in the box, but he inexplicably sent the ball over the crossbar from a short distance.
Just after the second half began, Marmoush had another excellent opportunity for a tap-in when Oscar Højlund set him up, yet he misfired, directing the ball straight at goalkeeper Robin Zentner.
While Mainz did not mount many attacks, they were more than willing to accept further errors from Santos. A poor backpass from the goalkeeper put Frankfurt under pressure, enabling Nebel to score his second goal of the match.
At a moment when it seemed that all prospects had faded, Rasmus Kristensen scored with a header with 15 minutes remaining. However, a remarkable comeback was not to be, as Mainz ascended to fifth place in the league following five victories in their last six matches, while Eintracht maintained a two-point lead in third position.
SportsLigue