Dhe last minutes of the longest football season in the history of Frankfurt Eintracht were as emotional as if the final chord had decided the well-being of this season. The 3-2 draw on SC Paderborn on the last day of the Bundesliga was no more than a summer kick, the return of three points would not even have been necessary to maintain ninth place in the final table.
The fact that the coaches, players and support team gathered for a farewell photo on the grass of the World Cup arena over 20 minutes after the final whistle showed the extraordinary spirit and solidarity that prevails in this professional group. Before that, many words had been spoken in the team and many tears had been crushed. For Marco Russ, Gelson Fernandes and Jonathan de Guzman, their engagement as Eintracht professionals ended. Three personalities who recently contributed more to the common good in the cabin and on the training field than in the stadiums. “After the game, I used the opportunity to form the circle, which I would never do otherwise, to say thank you to the three and everyone involved for this great season,” said Eintracht coach Adi Hütter.
Actually, he wanted to give all three a short farewell, but since Paderborn made the 0: 3 after goals from Rode, Silva and Dost a 2: 3 (goalscorer Dräger and Michel), Hütter left de Guzman’s substitution. After long injuries, Russ and Fernandes were in no condition to use them without hesitation. “I really wanted to win the game, so unfortunately I became a spoiler. I hope they don’t take it badly for me, ”said Hütter.
He didn’t have to be afraid. “The game was on the brink. So the decision was a matter of course for me. I’m happy now, ”said Russ, who came to Eintracht in 1996 at the age of eleven and remained loyal to the club for one and a half years at VfL Wolfsburg. Almost 35 years old Hanauer played his 328th and last competitive game for Eintracht in August in the Europa League qualification against Vaduz. After half an hour an Achilles tendon broke. The central defender struggled with the aftermath until the last matchday. “I would have been happy for two or three minutes, but the win was more important. The points are valuable for the TV rating. To be in the squad was respect enough for me. ”
Realized by the way the Hesse is, he took his leave without falling into too much melancholy. “After the Achilles tendon rupture last year, I had enough time to keep my distance, it was more and more difficult for me to get into the right physical condition.” Russ remains in agreement, he now moves to the analysis department of the club. Then he let himself be carried away to a particularly soulful remark: “According to my family, harmony is the greatest.”
Hütter found words of praise for Russ that characterized the defender: “I have known Marco in the past two years as a guy with a clear opinion, who played an important role within the team and contributed to the DFB Cup victory. I have respect for his performance for this club. “
Influenced by the emotions of the last working day, the otherwise considerate and controlled Hütter said a confessing sentence: “I am proud to be a coach at Eintracht Frankfurt.” bitten through in a difficult situation, even though they were loaded to the limit. “We played 104 games in two years, 29 of them in the European Cup. We got 99 points in the Bundesliga, that’s almost 50 on average. And we were in the semi-finals of the DFB Cup. All of this is more than impressive. “
The Austrian did not hide the fact that the team had to accept far too many goals. 60 in the Bundesliga. The defense association remained unchanged. On the other hand, there was no fear that after the dream storm Haller, Jovic and Rebic left, a peat lull would occur. In the Bundesliga, Eintracht achieved with strikers Silva, Dost and Paciencia with 59 goals, just one less than in the previous season. All three strikers had longer phases of injury.
But for too long, most Eintracht protagonists did not want to spend time analyzing football after almost twelve months (with preparation time). The thoughts went towards vacation. Hütter gave his players four weeks before the second round of the second leg against Basel is due after a good week of training on August 5. A date that wasn’t particularly exciting. Even sporting director Fredi Bobic said: “Now we’re happy that it’s around. Everyone is happy to go on vacation now. ”
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