Adi Hütter on…
…the Europa League last 16 first leg: “We produced a good performance against a top team in Europe. The second half in particular impressed me - we hardly conceded any chances and looked the more likely to open the scoring. In the first half we weren’t brave enough and gave them too much space. The second half gives me optimism for the second leg. The players are in great shape physically and I get the feeling we still have more to offer.”
…personnel: “Martin Hinteregger played brilliantly and could have capped a great performance with that header [in the second half]. David Abraham is on his way back but isn’t an option for Monday. I’ll be pleased if he’s available again for the return leg. He showed against Shakhtar that he can help us. Ante Rebic is in Serbia and will return on Tuesday at the latest. It would be nice to have him available for the return leg, too. He’s a different type of player to Luka Jovic and Sébastien Haller.”
…the pre-match tifo: “We all know that the Europa League is very special for Frankfurt. When the time comes to walk up the steps into the stadium and you see the tifo, it’s just fantastic and unparalleled in Europe. We can’t thank the fans enough for that. They deserve huge credit. Obviously we would have liked to have won the match for them.”
…the Eagles’ impressive defensive record: “Defending well always gives you a good foundation. We know we have quality in attack - we very rarely fail to score. Martin Hinteregger has definitely played a big part in helping our defence become stronger and more flexible. It allows Makoto Hasebe to play in defensive midfield from time to time. The game always starts at the back. We want to concede as few chances as possible, and I have faith in our ability to do that.”
…Monday's game in Düsseldorf: “Our current schedule means we’ll have to rotate, but we’ll still field a strong outfit on Monday and want to get a positive result against a Fortuna side with a good home record. Düsseldorf have been the second best team in the division in the last ten games [after Bayern Munich], have won four of their last five home games and recently won 4-0 at Schalke. We need to prepare ourselves for physical opponents who like to play down the wings. We need to be on our toes, be strong in the tackle and cover a lot of ground. I’m expecting an emotional game.”
