Eintracht Frankfurt manager Oliver Glasner is hoping to keep West Ham United occupied defensively on Thursday evening, rather than looking to sit back and hold onto their first-leg lead.
The 47-year-old Austrian told his pre-match press conference that he believes a defensive approach to the second leg – into which Die Adler will carry a 2-1 lead from London Stadium last week – would not be sustainable, given the Hammers’ attacking strength.
A 51,500-strong capacity crowd will be in attendance at Stadion Frankfurt on Thursday evening, including an anticipated 2,400 West Ham fans, with both teams having reputations for generating outstanding home atmospheres.
And on this most spectacular of occasions in the UEFA Europa League for both Die Alder and the Irons, Glasner is hoping home advantage could carry Frankfurt to a first continental final since 1980.
“I get the feeling that the whole of Germany are Eintracht fans in Europe,” the Eintracht manager said. “There’s recognition for our performances, but it’s not about living in the past - we need to stay focused.
“We’re expecting an opponent who will try everything to get into the final. But our approach is clear: with our fans behind us, we’ll play to win from the get-go.
“Our strategy must involve causing problems to the opposition defence. Our hope is to go forward and keep the opponent busy at all times. We need an even better performance than the first leg.”
Eintracht midfielder Jesper Lindstrøm will undergo a late fitness check, having hobbled off the pitch at London Stadium last week with an injury, whilst imposing centre-back Martin Hinteregger looks set to feature in the second leg.
“Things have improved in terms of personnel,” Glasner confirmed. “Hinteregger has returned to training. I assume he will be available tomorrow.
“We’ll see tomorrow whether Jesper Lindstrøm is available. Everyone else is physically and mentally fit.”
Frankfurt’s match-winner in east London last week was Japan international – and former Sagan Tosu and Sint-Truiden playmaker – Daichi Kamada, whose clever movement found him well-placed to tap home a rebound early in the second half.
The 25-year-old widely impressed with his all-round play in the first leg, but Glasner wants to see all of his side rise to the occasion and build on the famous knockout victories over Real Betis and Barcelona which have carried his team to this stage of the competition.
“Daichi is a very important connecting player,” Glasner explained. “He can evade cover, use his teammates and at the same time appear in the dangerous areas - as he did with his goal to make it 2-1 in London, in what was actually a typical centre-forward’s manner.
“He anticipates very well and is not above closing spaces going backwards. He's having an outstanding season in the Europa League. To find out why, we must ask him himself.
“Every player will be important tomorrow. We have to function as a team and we can only win together. It's important that we support each other and play very disciplined defensively. We have to improve again in this area, compared to the first leg.
“The players have gained enormous self-confidence through their performances over the past few months. We showed that we can hold our own against big opponents.
“But the most important thing is that the players implement what we tell them beforehand. The confidence that has developed, coupled with the support of our fans, provides this great belief in achieving our goal.
“We are prepared for standard situations both in defence and in offence. We defended set pieces well in the first leg. [Goalkeeper] Kevin Trapp was incredibly strong in the penalty area and picked a few balls out of the air. In general, set pieces are an important means of scoring in football.
“In terms of physique and intensity, we're in the upper range in the Bundesliga. That works in our favour against West Ham. We have prepared well for their game.”
Midfielder and Eintracht captain Rode, a 31-year-old former Germany youth international in his second spell with Die Adler after trophy-winning spells at Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, counts this semi-final second leg as one of the biggest experiences of his career.
Rode said: “Even though I've already played a few games internationally, this will be an absolute highlight in my career.
“The game means a great deal to me. We want to get to the final and we know from the first leg how hard it will be. We have to be wide awake from the first second and play to win to ensure we progress.”
“Physically, they were stronger than us at one or two set-plays. That’s why we have to focus on preventing set-pieces and holding our own.
“The attention we are currently getting is, of course, very nice. I'm still in the process of replying to WhatsApp messages from the Barcelona game! It's almost impossible to keep up with that.”
