Frankfurt's Marmoush misses Dortmund win ahead of Man City move

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Omar Marmoush didn't play though he still made it onto the field to bid what seemed like a farewell as Eintracht Frankfurt beat struggling Borussia Dortmund 2-0 on Friday.

Frankfurt left Marmoush out of its squad and confirmed he is close to completing a transfer to Manchester City. He will remain out of the team while negotiations continue.

After Frankfurt won the Bundesliga game, Marmoush joined the team on the field to acknowledge the cheers of the home crowd before being swarmed by his teammates.

The Egyptian striker has scored 15 league goals this season, raising questions over whether his departure will derail Frankfurt's bid to qualify for the Champions League.

For now at least, Frankfurt stayed on track, and 10th-placed Dortmund's losing run dragged on, piling pressure on coach Nuri Sahin.

Marmoush has played most of his breakout season in a two-striker formation with Hugo Ekitiké, who scored the opening goal in the 18th minute with a low shot through defender Waldemar Anton's legs to finish off an incisive counterattack.

Oscar Hojlund made sure of the win in added time, catching Emre Can in possession on the halfway line to start a breakaway that he ended with a low shot past stranded goalkeeper Gregor Kobel.

Frankfurt is third in the Bundesliga, six points off leader Bayern Munich.

Serhou Guirassy hit the post early on and Jamie Gittens had a penalty appeal turned down late in Dortmund's third straight loss to start 2025.

In each of those games, Dortmund struggled to deal with counterattacks and it was the same story on Friday as Sahin's team had 63% possession. Ansgar Knauff, in for Marmoush, could have scored a second goal for Frankfurt when he hit the post.

Dortmund coach Sahin was already under pressure before kickoff after his team — the Champions League runner-up last season — dropped to 11th in the Bundesliga following a shock 4-2 loss on Wednesday to relegation-threatened Holstein Kiel.

Dortmund has won just one of its last eight games in all competitions in a run stretching back nearly two months.

The one bright spot has been solid Champions League form ahead of Dortmund's visit to Italian club Bologna on Tuesday. Dortmund is ninth in the 36-team standings and is a strong contender to be one of the top eight teams that qualify directly for the round of 16 and skip the playoff stage.

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