Oliver Glasner has a huge chance today (9 p.m., ORF 1) to lead Eintracht Frankfurt to a Europa League final for the first time. The 47-year-old Riedauer defended a 2-1 lead against West Ham in front of a full house from the first leg.
The “Adler” subordinated everything to this match and on Monday in the German Bundesliga they went into overdrive at the 0:2 in Leverkusen.
That was understandable because the Hessians are cemented in midfield as the current table eleven. “You could see from our line-up that Thursday’s game has absolute priority. That was right, I stand by it. It’s about making it into the final for the first time in over 40 years,” stressed Glasner.
The European Cup is the only way to be represented internationally in the coming season. Eintracht need to lift the trophy in Seville on May 18 to secure a Champions League ticket.
Memories of 1980
Incidentally, Frankfurt has already won the UEFA Cup, which is the predecessor of the Europa League. In 1980, the traditional club prevailed in two finals against Mönchengladbach due to the away goals rule, which has since been abolished. After a 2:3 defeat at the Bökelberg, there was a 1:0 victory in the Waldstadion, which the “Joker” Fred Schaub, who died far too early, only fixed in the 81st minute.
The father of the current ÖFB team player Louis Schaub (1. FC Köln) stormed in the late autumn of his career (1990 to 1993) in Austria for Admira/Wacker, VfB Mödling and FavAC.
There could also be a purely German final this year. RB Leipzig, Konrad Laimer’s team, will also play at 9 p.m. (ServusTV) with a 1-0 lead at Glasgow Rangers. The last time there was sand in the championship, the Saxons flew out of the Champions League ranks after defeats against Union Berlin (1: 2) and in Mönchengladbach (3: 1).
An atmospheric evening
“We know it won’t be easy at Ibrox Stadium,” said Leipzig coach Domenico Tedesco ahead of the trip to Scotland, where 50,000 Rangers fans will heat up the atmosphere. It will also be really loud in the Deutsche Bank Park in Frankfurt. Eintracht fans left a lasting impression on the world football map with the “Migration of Nations” to Barcelona, where 30,000 visiting fans had turned the Camp Nou into a home ground. The 3-2 away win was also on everyone’s lips. Now the “eagles” really want to go to Seville for the showdown. “I asked our players who had played in an international final before,” said Glasner. “Except for Rafa Borre in South America, there’s no one there. It shows that it’s exceptional in a player’s or manager’s career.”
Frankfurt’s defense chief Martin Hinteregger was at least close to a Europa League final three years ago. In the semifinals at Chelsea, however, the Carinthian failed on penalties. The coach at the time was Adi Hütter, who will be a grandstand guest today. (Alex)
Source: Nachrichten
