Eintracht Frankfurt decline role of favourites against wobbling Tottenham ahead of Europa League quarter-final | OneFootball

Eintracht Frankfurt head coach Dino Toppmöller and squad captain Robin Koch answered questions at Wednesday’s press conference ahead of tomorrow’s Europa League fixture against Tottenham Hotspur. A 1-1 draw against Spurs at White Hart Lane last week leaves the Bundesliga club naturally confident ahead of the second quarter-final leg at home.

The coach and captain naturally didn’t wish to appear too confident. A comparison to where the German side and their English guests stand in the table meant nothing to either Toppmöller or his skipper.

A Sport1 reporter took it upon himself to point out the current form of both teams. Eintracht were able to dispatch 16th place FC Heidenheim easily at the weekend while Tottenham were defeated 4-2 by the Premier League’s (then) 17th-placed team Wolves.

In lieu of a question, the reporter simply “congratulated” Toppmöller on the role of “being the favourite” in tomorrow’s match.

“We don’t want to take anything away from them,” Toppmöller answered. “We know of the quality Tottenham have. I also know of several results that they’ve already accomplished. They beat Manchester United 3-0. They beat Manchester City 4-0. It’s deserving of respect that they won these matches. There’s a powerful force coming our way tomorrow.

“We nevertheless remain confident of our quality and what we’ve brought to the pitch,” Toppmöller continued. “Their game on Sunday has zero relevance as their focus is on the Europa League. For us, it was different on Sunday because we’re still playing for something in our league. It’s going well for us at the moment, but we know what’s coming.“

“Dino mentioned it already,” Koch said in response to a later question. “For Tottenham, everything is on the line tomorrow. Their [league] campaign is more or less over. I have no expectation that Tottenham will lie down.“

A humorous moment ensured near the end of the presser. An English journalist posed the lone English language question of the media round, requesting that Toppmöller and Koch inform English fans how loud it will be at Deutsche Bank Park tomorrow night.

“They will feel it tomorrow,” Toppmöller answered flatly.

Koch – who did play in Leeds for four seasons – remained silent for several seconds before saying smirking and mouthing “that’s about all” to the side of the microphone.

The entire press room broke out in laughter.

GGFN | Peter Weis