Halloween may still be more than two weeks away, but Eintracht Frankfurt head coach Adi Hütter has already issued a call for his players to become considerably more frightening opponents. Following Saturday’s humiliating 6-0 Bundesliga defeat away at RB Leipzig, the Austrian head coach has demanded greater aggression, commitment, and fighting spirit ahead of Friday evening’s home encounter with 1. FC Köln.
The timing has inspired an especially entertaining piece of seasonal football journalism from Kicker Eintracht correspondent Julian Franzke, who deserves full credit for coming up with a wonderfully imaginative way of describing Frankfurt’s predicament. In his delightfully creative assessment of Frankfurt’s problems, Franzke wondered whether the current Eintracht squad more closely resembled a harmless flock of sheep than a ferocious pack of wolves.
The correspondent then carried his analogy into the supernatural realm, noting that the next full moon will not arrive until October 26. Unfortunately for Hütter, werewolf transformations cannot be scheduled to accommodate Bundesliga fixtures.
Frankfurt must face a streaking cathedral city side considerably sooner, meaning the Austrian cannot afford to wait for his players to develop sharper teeth beneath the glow of a suitably sinister autumnal Hessian full moon. Franzke’s extended metaphor deserves recognition for transforming a fairly conventional collection of pre-match quotations into a thoroughly entertaining piece of writing.
His Halloween-adjacent imagery also provides a fitting introduction to the uncomfortable questions now confronting Frankfurt.
Fear, horror, and a seemingly endless procession of uninspired film sequels haunt Frankfurt this Halloween season.
Hütter wants Frankfurt to slash and sting
“Bite, scratch, pinch,” Hütter demanded when describing the mentality he expects from his players against Köln. “We’re simply too easy to play against for many opponents at the moment. I want us to become more difficult to face again. We’re too pleasant. That simply won’t do.”
“I want to see a team on the pitch that fights until it drops,” Hütter continued. “That’s what all 60,000 people in the stadium expect.”
Hütter’s frustration reflects problems that have persisted across several coaching regimes. Frankfurt have struggled to reproduce the physical commitment and defensive organization despite cycling through two coaches and retooling most of the midfield and defense via the transfer market.
Dino Toppmöller’s SGE lost 6-0 away at Leipzig last December and have now repeated the result despite all the changes. The problems continued after the turn of the year. Toppmöller was dismissed after Frankfurt conceded nine goals across their opening three January fixtures.
As Get German Football News had feared ahead of his appointment, Albert Riera’s coaching regime subsequently descended into something resembling a horror-themed clown show. Hütter has enjoyed some success since returning, but Saturday’s Leipzig humiliation suggests that the nightmare is far from over.
Hütter, himself a returning character from Frankfurt’s more successful past, must now ensure that his second stint doesn’t become another uninspired sequel — or, worse still, a continuation of Riera’s fright night.
Captain Koch survives the chopping block
Center-back Robin Koch, one of the few remaining constants amid Frankfurt’s upheaval, has become a particularly important figure in Hütter’s efforts to restore the club’s defensive resilience. The 30-year-old was substituted at halftime during the Leipzig debacle following another disappointing performance. The decision inevitably raised questions about his form, leadership, and immediate future in the starting XI.
Hütter made no attempt to disguise the performance-related nature of Koch’s halftime substitution. Journalists waited with bated breath to find out how Hütter would handle the Koch matter at Wednesday’s pre-match press conference. The SGE trainer, however, proved entirely unequivocal.
“Robin will play on Friday and remain captain,” the Austrian confirmed. “There’s absolutely no discussion about that. Naturally, I also expect Robin to use his voice as a leader to organize the team. That’s something I particularly missed in the first half against Leipzig.”
Koch’s difficulties are particularly significant given his longstanding importance to Frankfurt’s defensive organization. Hütter now needs his captain to rediscover the authority and aggression that initially established him as an important figure at the club.
Haunted Waldstadion? Frankfurt seek to end their home nightmare
The problems confronting Hütter are hardly confined to the team’s performances away from home. Frankfurt have gone six consecutive Bundesliga home matches without a victory, recording three draws and three defeats. Their last home win came against Heidenheim on March 14. For a club accustomed to drawing considerable energy from the atmosphere at their home venue, that represents a particularly troubling sequence.
“I cannot understand how a team can go so long without winning at home,” Hütter admitted. “60,000 people come to the stadium to support us. The only thing they want to see is us going flat out from the first minute to the last.”
The coach believes Frankfurt must rediscover the intimidating home presence that characterized his previous spell in charge. During the 2020/21 campaign, the Eagles went unbeaten in every Bundesliga home fixture despite mostly playing behind closed doors.
“We have to earn that reputation as a home powerhouse again,” Hütter said. “But that doesn’t happen overnight, and it doesn’t happen just by talking.”
Friday’s meeting with Köln provides another opportunity to begin reversing the trend. Hütter has already cancelled his players’ scheduled Monday rest day following the Leipzig humiliation and made his expectations unmistakably clear.
There may be no full moon over Frankfurt on Friday evening, but the Austrian will be hoping his players can finally produce something for their opponents to fear. And unlike so many disappointing horror sequels, merely recycling the scares of years gone by won’t be enough.
