Last season, they won the European League and thus ensured their participation in the most prestigious club competition. For the first time in modern history, the players of Frankfurt played in the Champions League under the name European Champions Cup only in the 1959/60 season, when they lost to Real Madrid in the final.
It was already clear after the draw that this year’s group with the German team, Tottenham, Sporting Lisbon and Marseille does not have a clear favorite. This was confirmed and before the last matches on Tuesday, all teams were in the game for promotion.
“We made history as the team that played the Champions League for the first time and immediately went through the group stage. We have only confirmed what we have been showing in recent weeks,” praised goalkeeper Kevin Trapp after the 2:1 win at Sporting.
Turnover only in the second half
The triumph in the direct battle for promotion did not come easily, the Portuguese led 1:0 at halftime. But then experienced midfielder Sebastian Rode came on the pitch, calmed the team down and a famous turnaround followed. Daichi Kamada first equalized from the penalty spot, Randal Kolo Muani added the decisive goal in the 72nd minute.
“It’s amazing how we’ve supported each other. We were lucky with the penalty kick, we made it 2:1 and finally advanced to the elite sixteen. I still can’t believe it. I’m proud,” gushed coach Oliver Glasner.
“We got 10 points in the group. An extraordinary feat. I pay a big tribute to the whole team, I am extremely happy,” added the 48-year-old strategist.
Tottenham avoided elimination at the last minute
The second match of the group also offered great drama. A draw against Marseille was enough for Tottenham, but the hosts took the lead in the first half. The Londoners equalized thanks to stopper Clement Lenglet’s header, withstood the opponent’s overwhelming pressure in some places, and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg added insurance from a counterattack in the set-up.
“We didn’t lose our heads and stayed in the game. We were not focused on the conceded goal, the corner was played quickly. This is an important lesson for the future. In the second half, we changed a lot of things, the result was a fantastic 45 minutes,” assistant coach Cristian Stellini did not hide his joy, but he was led as the main man on the bench in France after the expulsion of head coach Antonio Conte in the previous match.
Group D was thus split up only in the last minutes of the whole autumn part. At least Sporting can look forward to the European League, for Marseille the European Cups are over for this season.
