Eintracht Frankfurt hosted Cologne in the Bundesliga on Friday at 19:30 BST, with live coverage on Sport and iPlayer. It was a meeting that mattered before the first tackle, because Frankfurt began the night in 14th place on five points from five games, while Cologne were in tenth with seven points and could move up five places with a win.
The numbers explain why the pressure was immediate. Frankfurt had won once and drawn twice in their opening five league matches, but had also conceded 16 goals, including six in last week's defeat to Leipzig. That left Adi Hutter's side with one of their lowest starts in five seasons and no home win for six months, after three draws and three losses at The Deutsche Bank Park since their last victory there over Heidenheim. Hutter has still had success on Friday evenings, with two wins and three draws, but the table still asked a sharper question than the fixture list did.
Cologne arrived with a quieter story but enough threat to change the shape of the table. Younes Ebnoutalib had four goals and one more assist in five games, Linton Maina had one goal and two assists, and Mikey Moore was on the bench after starting to learn German on loan at Cologne from Spurs. For Frankfurt, that meant the margin for error was thin: a team trying to stop goals going in, and another trying to turn a solid start into a leap up the standings.
That is what made Friday's match feel bigger than a single evening. Frankfurt were trying to end a six-month wait for a home win and avoid another setback in a season that had already started badly, while Cologne were chasing a result that could lift them five places. The answer to both questions would come only from the final score, which was not yet available when the game kicked off.
