Dino Toppmöller on ...
... the past week: “We’re travelling to Bochum with a very good feeling. We had a good week of training and worked hard. We’re going into the game with great excitement. A game under the lights at Bochum’s famous Ruhrstadion, a capacity crowd, a good pitch, a good atmosphere, tough tackles – that’s what we play football for.”
... personnel: “Thank goodness all the players returned from international duty with a clean bill of health. Pacho only landed yesterday, but if he gives us the green light he’ll be in the starting XI. Jakic (knee) and Alario (tooth issue) have had to take it easy over the past two days. We’ll have to see if they’re fit enough for the squad.”
We’ll need to win challenges, be better than our opponents and have that hunger to score goals and defend properly.
Head coach Dino Toppmöller
... opponents VfL Bochum: “They play man-v-man with plenty of challenges, but with good transitions too. Philipp Hofmann can hold the ball up in attack or flick it on with good headers, Takuma Asano is extremely quick and Kevin Stöger is probably their most technically gifted player who can play good passes in behind the defence. They’re a good side. They’re also very strong in their own stadium, which gives them added energy for moments like this. Against Dortmund, they were able to cause problems against an absolutely fantastic side.”
... Eintracht’s approach: “We have an idea of what we’re going to need, both in attack and in defence. We’ll need to win challenges, be better than our opponents and have that hunger to score goals and defend properly. We’re going to have to be extremely pro-active during the game. We always prefer to play our way out of trouble, but we shouldn’t be afraid of taking the easy option.”
... the recent winless run away from home: “I don’t care one bit what’s gone on before. It’s about us and focusing on the challenges that lie ahead. We want to win away games and the best place to start is on Saturday.
