Oliver Glasner really doesn’t want to see his professionals from Eintracht Frankfurt on Ibiza or Mallorca. The head coach from Austria started the last full week before the long-awaited final in the Europa League rather leisurely.
Monday will see recovery and UEFA media events for the final against Glasgow Rangers in Seville on 18 May, followed by two days off. “But I don’t want to read that they’re going on a party trip,” said football coach Glasner with a smile, alluding to the Bayern pros’ recent short trip to Ibiza.
After the 1-1 draw against Borussia Mönchengladbach and ex-coach Adi Hütter, Frankfurt is on course for the final. Glasner does not want to neglect the Bundesliga game in Mainz this Saturday (3:30 p.m. / Sky), which is irrelevant for the table.
“We want to be at our best in Seville, but we’re taking Mainz as an absolute dress rehearsal. We’ll play with our best team that’s available to us. We’ll go all out on Thursday,” announced Glasner, who was strong against Gladbach rotated.
Eintracht will receive 10,000 tickets for the final
Before that, captain Sebastian Rode, who, like many other players, was rested in the draw against the Foals, had heated up the fans in the sold-out stadium in short jeans and a white shirt. “We still have so many big plans. We want to thank you for your support on the field the Wednesday after next, so that we can celebrate on the Römer on Thursday,” said Rode on Sunday.
The fans are in a similar situation as the team: Only Seville counts, after all, in Andalusia, in addition to an international title, the ticket for the premier class is also at stake. For this they will travel to Seville in large numbers, on complicated, expensive and arduous routes. Officially, the club will receive 10,000 tickets for the final against the traditional Scottish club. There will be more fans in the city, that’s for sure.
Despite the rather inharmonious separation in the summer of 2021, it was “a great return” for Hütter, as the Austrian described it. He begrudges his former club the title that he and his Frankfurt team were not granted in 2019 after the semi-final defeat by Chelsea. “We were also close. It’s not about this year, it’s about the way the club has developed since 2016. There are a lot of great moments,” said Hütter.
“You can only be proud of that. I wish the trophy goes to Main.” Hütter was already in Frankfurt for the semi-final second leg against West Ham United on Thursday to speak to the club’s management team. He described his own first year at Borussia as the most difficult in recent memory.