Oliver Glasner should have known that many eyes would be on him. Despite this, the Eintracht Frankfurt coach, who was banned from play in a box, said he was surprised that after the 3-0 win over Mainz 05, footage emerged of his wife kissing. “You can’t even do anything behind the mirror glass. Luckily you didn’t see everything,” Glasner said, grinning a little tormented. This digression into private life ended a press conference, to which the head coach and not his assistant Michael Angerschmid appeared. “I congratulated the coaching staff and thanked them for the way they did it,” said Glasner.
Glasner, 48, and Angerschmid, 49, managed the role change smoothly, also because they get along very well privately. The two Austrians often go out for a drink together in Frankfurt. Maybe Glasner and sports director Markus Krösche should have done the same thing, then there would not have been the many upsets that ultimately led to the cooperation ending one year before the contract expired in the summer of 2024.
Captain Sebastian Rode showed that at least parts of the team can gain something from the separation. From his point of view, it is “very, very unfortunate” because you have worked successfully, but there are also professionals who would hope for more operating times again. The same core of players was almost always used under Glasner – one of many allegations that Krösche, 42, made against Glasner.
President Peter Fischer admitted in ZDF’s “Sportstudio” that the separation was “difficult to convey” after the city and club paid homage to Salzburg after the Europa League triumph a year ago. “I have a lot of understanding that the fan says: are you crazy? I could also understand if we win the trophy and someone in Berlin says: are you stupid?” Fischer, 67, even admitted that he had to find out “many details, many details” after hours of discussions in the committees in order to signal approval.
Fischer sees a kind of class war in the cup final
The head of the club would now like to “let the football coach, who is popular with the supporters, go through the big goal” because: “Oliver Glasner is a great coach and will go down in the history of the SBU.” When stadium announcer Daniel Wolf called the coach’s first name, the audience in the city forest roared louder than ever before: “Glaaaasneeeeer!” Maybe they’ll celebrate it again at the Römer after the cup final against Leipzig.
For Fischer, who is also leaving at the end of the year, there is a kind of class struggle in Berlin: “The construct against the traditional club.” The president’s wish is otherwise the same as that of the head coach: “I want to go with the trophy!”