Eintracht Frankfurt vs HJK Helsinki prediction 26.10.2023

• Competition: Europa Conference League
• Date: Thursday, 26th October 2023
• Kickoff: 20:00 UTC +1 / 21:00 CEST
• Venue: Deutsche Bank Park (Frankfurt)

Eintracht Frankfurt will host Finnish champions, HJK, in the third round of the Europa Conference League Group phase on Thursday evening.

The 2021/22 Europa League champions, Eintracht Frankfurt, are entering this competition as one of the top contenders for the trophy. Bookmakers currently place only Aston Villa and Fiorentina with higher odds of winning. So far, Frankfurt’s performance in the current season has been more or less as anticipated, ranking 7th in the Bundesliga with 13 points from eight matches. However, their performance in the ECL has been less impressive, with only three points from two games.

HJK, the top team in Finland, has secured 13 league titles in the last 16 years, yet has experienced limited success in Europe. Recently, they have shown some progress by qualifying for the Group phase three times consecutively. However, they have struggled to score points in the Group. This year, they only scored one point in the first two matches against PAOK and Aberdeen. Despite having a different football calendar than most of Europe, HJK has just completed their domestic league season and clinched the title. However, they made things difficult for themselves by losing the last two matches and only secured victory due to a superior goal difference over KuPS (by three goals).

Eintracht Frankfurt vs HJK pick: Eintracht Frankfurt to win and cover the -2 AH spread

Eintracht Frankfurt had gone nine games without a loss from the beginning of the season before they suffered back-to-back defeats against Wolfsburg and PAOK. Despite this, they managed to recover with two easy victories in the next two matches. It’s worth noting that those losses occurred during away games. Meanwhile, at Deutsche Bank Park, they remain undefeated with four victories out of six games across all competitions.

HJK enters this game following consecutive defeats against VPS and KuPS, during which they conceded a total of five goals.

HJK had a strong showing in the Veikkausliga, but their performance in Europe, particularly in away games, was less than impressive. Despite having played five games, including qualification matches, they have lost four. It’s worth noting that they were up against teams significantly less formidable than Eintracht Frankfurt.

Given that Eintracht Frankfurt has a stronger team, superior form, and the advantage of playing at home, it would be hugely surprising for us if they don’t secure a significant victory.