Eintracht Frankfurt responded to its historic victory over Barcelona at the Camp Nou, which ousted the Catalan giants from the European League.
The Eagles won 1-1 in the first leg from their Deutsche Bank stadium to Spain, showing impressive offensive and defensive performances for the host crowd to witness.
In the first three minutes of the match, they took the lead when Philippe Costok kicked a penalty kick past Marc-Andre ter Stegen. By the end of the first half, Barcelona were two goals behind after struggling striker Raphael Boré scored to take the aggregate score to 3-1 in favor of the German side.
The second half was even more so, as Kostik scored his second and fourth goal for Frankfurt, before Barcelona late in the extra nine minutes of the match pulled two goals through a stunning goal from captain Sergio Busquets and a penalty kick. From Memphis Depay.
Frankfurt, who had an estimated 30,000 in his corner at the Camp Nou, took them home with them and flooded the Blaugrana in Barcelona, which also contributed to their massive win. They have now played their semi-final match with West Ham United, who beat Olympique Lyonnais 4-1 in the second game of the quarter-finals.
An exuberant Frankfurt led by Oliver Glasner could not contain its joy at this famous victory at a stadium as famous as the Camp Nou.
Glasner, whose team is currently ninth in the Bundesliga table and without hope in European football next season, will be very excited to have the opportunity to secure a place among the European elite after Frankfurt advanced to the semi-finals of the Europa League.
Speaking about the match, Glasner said: “The players are very credited for what they did here. They did everything perfectly for 85 minutes.
“We had a game plan with our strength and our strength. We let them have the ball where we didn’t feel they could cause problems. The players achieved something that rarely happens anywhere in the world.
“We celebrated this great victory as one with the fans. Many thanks to the players and fans. It leaves a mark on your heart.”
Frankfurt has now staged the rematch with West Ham after losing to the London side in the then European Cup Winners’ Cup semi-final (now known as the Europa League) 4-3 on aggregate.
Veteran midfielder Sebastian Rudd, captain of the Eagles, echoed his coach’s sentiments. “It gives you amazing energy to play in front of these fans. We did everything we could to fulfill our dream of beating Barcelona.
“Eintracht’s development is amazing. Ten years ago, I was still in the second division with the club, and now they are in the semi-finals of the European League for the second time in four seasons.”
Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez admitted that his team were superior that night. “Eintracht played to their strength really well, they were strong, physically and very good on their sixteen-yard box.
“They play on counter-attacks and counter-pressure in a way I’ve only seen from a few teams in my career. We didn’t defend well and couldn’t stop them. Congratulations Eintracht, they deserve to go.”
Eagles goalkeeper Kevin Trapp didn’t have much to do in the match. However, he succeeded when he was called to work on a rare occasion.
The German goalkeeper said there were no words to describe the victory over Barcelona, which was on the back of an incredible travel support. “There are no words to describe what is happening here. Everyone thought we came here and Barcelona would take us off the field, but it wasn’t like that.
“Now we are in the semi-finals and we have two really tough matches ahead, but we will do our best to come out victorious. Obviously we want to reach the final now. It is an evening full of pride and joy, and a very emotional evening. I have seen a lot, but it is unbelievable.”
