Hugo Ekitike played a starring role as Eintracht Frankfurt cruised to a 3-0 home win over Heidenheim on Sunday to consolidate its push for a UEFA Champions League spot.

Frankfurt started brightly and was rewarded inside 10 minutes. A quick counterattack down the left saw Fares Chaibi pick out Jean-Matteo Bahoya, who calmly slotted home from close range.

Heidenheim went close shortly afterward, but Tim Siersleben's header was well saved by goalkeeper Kaua Santos.

Despite enjoying more possession in the first half, the visitor lacked a cutting edge in the final third, while Frankfurt continued to threaten and doubled its advantage just before the break. Robin Koch found space in the box and finished neatly after Ekitike's clever lay-off.

Frank Schmidt's side responded by making two changes at halftime, with Sirlord Conteh injecting some life into the attack. Heidenheim came close to pulling one back when Marvin Pieringer missed a golden opportunity from close range.

Frankfurt withstood the pressure and delivered the final blow in the 71st minute. After a flowing team move involving Mario Gotze and Chaibi, Nathaniel Brown squared for Ekitike, who made no mistake from close range to make it 3-0.

The win keeps Frankfurt firmly in control of third place and full of confidence ahead of its Europa League clash with Tottenham, while Heidenheim remains in the relegation play-off places.

"It was clearly our goal to take all three points today. Credit to the team for that, but we need to stay grounded. We know where we stand, and we want to finish the job," said Frankfurt head coach Dino Toppmoller.

Elsewhere on Sunday, Werder Bremen came from behind to snatch its third straight victory after seeing off 10-man Stuttgart 2-1. 

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