WIf Eintracht wins the cup final against defending champions Leipzig on June 3rd in Berlin, they will triumph for the sixth time in this competition. The Frankfurters would then even be the first to pursue record title holders Bayern Munich, who were successful 20 times in the DFB Cup. Sebastian Rode, who was part of the Munich Cup winning team in 2016, was involved once. A year later, today’s Eintracht captain celebrated the title in the Dortmund jersey.
If success number three were to follow for Rode with the Hessians as an employer, “it would be my absolute career highlight. It would be historic to win two titles in a row with this club,” said the 32-year-old. In the pre-season, the Frankfurters were enthusiastic about winning the Europa League, but for a long time nobody in the select field of participants had counted on them until the Hessians were no longer able to be stopped at the finish line thanks to their enormous willpower.
Rode’s team-mate Jesper Lindström – he played 70 minutes in the final against Glasgow Rangers – has never won the cup, which is an additional incentive for the international. Because the Dane had won the championship with Brondby IF in 2021, the third prestigious award in his football career would be added if he were successful against Leipzig. However, it is still uncertain how large Lindström’s active part will be in wanting to bring the trophy back to the Main after 2018. It is currently a race against time for the nimble Dane.
Week-long injury break
One that the winger could lose after his week-long injury layoff in March and April, despite his great determination to quickly get back to his old form. The tear of two ligaments in his ankle, suffered during training, threw Lindström out of the high-performance football game from one second to the next. He missed six Bundesliga games and won the cup game in the quarterfinals against Union Berlin.
In the six first division duels without the Danes, Eintracht never left the field as the winner; the only four goals she scored were a miserable yield for the high Hessian claims. Lindström’s absence made Frankfurt suffer, who had their wedding on the pitch last autumn thanks to his goal threat (nine goals, four assists). With the Tempodribbler from Denmark, the creative players Mario Götze and Daichi Kamada had one more target player up front. Moreover, the opposition’s attention wasn’t just focused on goalscorer Randal Kolo Muani; they also had to be wary of Lindstrom’s attacking force. His participation made the Main team difficult to calculate.
That’s why Oliver Glasner expects Lindstrom, who is said to be being courted by attractive clubs from Europe, to have better chances in the cup final against Leipzig, who have been finalists four times in the past five years. However, the current performance of the Dane is the yardstick, he will not be able to play a leading role on the big stage in the federal capital, contrary to the hope of the coach. The Bundesliga game at Schalke 04 (2-2) last weekend didn’t bring the winger any further on the way to finding his old form. After Lindstrom came on in the 73rd minute, most of what he tried literally bogged down. The 23-year-old didn’t manage to use his speed and dribbling skills for the good of Eintracht.
He, who fools his opponents on a good day, was unable to create any gaps in Schalke’s defence. With that, Glasner’s parade plan for the big season finale in Berlin has come to a standstill with regard to Lindstrom. Step by step, the Dane should gain match practice after his recovery in order to be able to successfully start in the final at the end of the season in Berlin. Lindström received a total of 89 minutes of game time from Glasner in the last four Bundesliga games. Each of them showed that he is not gaining momentum. Under the pressure of having to function again as quickly as possible, the offensive player can’t find his rhythm or bond with the team. Now he has one more chance to gain new self-confidence before the showdown against Leipzig: the final home game of the season this Saturday against Freiburg. It will finally shed light on what Lindstrom is capable of in the home straight of the game year. Eintracht wants a performance explosion from him.
