Eintracht Frankfurt: Stress between Riera and Jonathan Burkardt

Unrest at Eintracht

Since joining Eintracht Frankfurt, Albert Riera and his team have lost three Bundesliga games. The number of players who – according to rumors – are said to have a strained relationship with the coach is now larger. “Bild” now reported on an incident involving Jonathan Burkardt (25).

It’s about the slightly deteriorated fitness values ​​of the striker, who had a significantly better goal rate before his long-term calf injury in the winter – under coach Dino Toppmöller – than afterwards under Riera. However, there is also less consistency in the playing time. Burkardt feels fit, but is particularly surprised at Riera that the Spaniard did not seek discussion with the player himself about Burkardt’s body fat percentage being allegedly too high. Riera had assistant coach Jan Fießer do it.

Surprised, Burkardt then turned to his advisor, who in turn sought a conversation with sports director Markus Krösche. Krösche then approached Riera to discuss this approach – apparently critically. In any case, Riera doesn’t seem to have enjoyed the conversation with the boss. According to “Bild”, the coach then shouted at the striker as he passed. This all happened before the game in Augsburg (1-1), in which Burkardt was only substituted on in the 88th minute.

After the game, however, Riera himself gave the reason why he did not rely on Burkardt, but on Arnaud Kalimuendo (24). He spoke about the characteristics of the game and said: “I just wanted to play with Kalimuendo in the center against Augsburg because of his depth runs.” There’s no need to talk about Burkardt, says Riera, he’s “doing a fantastic job. He’s professional, his attitude is great.”

Burkardt’s banking position was also recently discussed in the TM community. TM user “eagle1978” doesn’t see a problem because Riera’s explanation would also have made sense: “At the moment Kalimuendo is our top striker, that’s just a side note. Johnny is a top guy and still a great transfer for around 20 million – that’s not really a sum for such players these days. I’m sure we’ll be celebrating many more great games and goals from Johnny.” On the other hand, “Satorius” thinks: “There may be players who need a hint from the coach to get back on track. For them, it can sometimes be appropriate to leave them out. However, I wouldn’t rate Burkardt that way at all. He’s someone who always gives his all on the pitch and who makes a very self-reflective impression.” (Join the discussion now!)

In any case, with the “Bild” report, Burkardt joins a list of colleagues who have already been said to have a difficult relationship with Riera or specific conflicts with the trainer. Arthur Theate (25) and Mario Götze (33), as well as captain Robin Koch (29), also feel marginalized. Rumors of Ritsu Doan (27), whom Riera moved from the wing to the center, where his scoring values ​​fell significantly, recently caused a stir. Can Uzun (20) and Younes Ebnoutalib (22) are also considered dissatisfied with their roles in Frankfurt.