Berlin – When returning to the Europa League oasis of well-being after a three-month break, Eintracht Frankfurt wants to build on the sovereign group phase and set course for the quarter-finals with a strong performance. “We’re back on track in time. When we fly home on Thursday, we want to be able to say: We played a great game,” said coach Oliver Glasner and promised his team on Tuesday at the final training session in Frankfurt for the first leg in the round of 16 at Betis Sevilla.
The game this Wednesday (6.45 p.m. / RTL +) should only be a transit station on the beloved Europe trip for the Hessian Bundesliga club. “We have to go to our limit and perform very well in both games. But our goal is clear, to win twice and to progress,” Eintracht-Sportstand Markus Krösche formulated the claim.
Spurred on by the most recent 4-1 win at Hertha BSC, the Eintracht entourage confidently made their way to Andalusia. There, the Hessians awaited a difficult task. Because Betis Sevilla are having a strong season in the Spanish La Liga and are currently in fifth place. In addition, the traditional club founded in 1907 is in the cup final. At home, Betis is overshadowed by its big city rivals FC Sevilla – and of course the big three in Spanish football: Real Madrid, FC Barcelona and Atlético Madrid, against whom the dress rehearsal last Sunday was lost 3-1. Nevertheless, the respect among the Frankfurters is great. “They are strong in terms of play and have a lot of top players. We have to do everything we can to advance one lap,” said Sebastian Rode.
The midfielder, having recovered from an abdominal muscle injury, was on board with the injured Danny da Costa when the plane took off for Seville on Tuesday afternoon. With the exception of the yellow-banned striker Gonçalo Paciência, Glasner has the strongest squad available. “We have to try to concede as little as possible in order to then leave the field as winners,” said goalkeeper Kevin Trapp.
A hot atmosphere awaits him and the people in front of him, as there are no longer any corona restrictions for football games in Spain. 60,000 spectators could therefore be present at the Estadio Benito Villamarín, including 3,000 Eintracht supporters. “It’s no secret that our fans are very, very important to us. That’s why I’m happy that we’ll have them behind us in Seville,” said winger Filip Kostic and promised: “We’ll do it!”