The German club Eintracht Frankfurt recently clinched the UEFA Europa League 2021/22 title after beating the Scottish club Rangers in the final of this tournament at Seville.
Last Wednesday (18th May), Frankfurt and Rangers met in the final of the UEFA Europa League 2021/22. After having a 1-1 scoreline in 90 minutes, that game entered into the extra time. While the extra-time failed to bring a result, the match entered into the penalty shootout, where the German club won by 5-4 and lifted that trophy.
Some crucial stats for the latest UEFA Europa League winners Frankfurt
- Frankfurt became the third team, after the English club Chelsea (2018/19) and Spanish club Villarreal (2020/21), to win the UEFA Europa League title as an unbeaten side in the complete tournament.
- Since UEFA Europa League Final has been followed the single-leg format in 1998, Frankfurt became the first German club to win the UEFA Europa League trophy.
- Eintracht Frankfurt won their second UEFA Europa League. Earlier, they won the 1979/80 UEFA Cup when they beat another West Germany club Borussia Mönchengladbach.
- Including winning 1966/67 UEFA Intertoto Cup, Frankfurt have now won three European trophies.
Now we are talking about some of the key points of Frankfurt’s latest UEL success.
Unbeaten attitude
Frankfurt were the unbeaten team in the entire UEFA Europa League 2021/22. They finished the Group Stage as the champions in Group D with 12 points in six games (three won and three drew).
Later, in the knockout phase of this tournament, the Eagles beat the Spanish clubs Real Betis and Barcelona, English club West Ham United and ultimately the Scottish club Rangers respectively to inscribe their name on the cup.
Probably, Barcelona were their strongest challenge in that tournament as the German club faced the in-form Spanish team at that time. While Frankfurt had the 1-1 draw result at their home, it created more pressure on them. However, their never give up spirit helped them to stun the hosts Barcelona with a 3-2 result in their favour, despite two late goals from the home team.
Though they continuously faced challenges in the remaining games of this tournament, the Eagles were always confident in their duties.
Top-class players
It is completely impractical to believe that a team achieved a cup success without having top quality players. Due to having many strong quality players in the squad, Frankfurt finished as the best team in this competition.
While the Colombian forward Rafael Santos Borré finished as the leading goal-scorer for the Eagles in this complete season with 12 goals, his impressive finish helped Frankfurt to equalize the scoreline in the crucial final game. He finished that tournament with four goals.
Meanwhile, Japanese midfielder Daichi Kamada recorded five goals in that competition, which was the highest for this team in that tournament. In the meantime, Serbian midfielder Filip Kostic finished the UEL season as the leading assist provider with six assists, including his assist during their only goal in the final. Kostic also scored three goals in that competition.
And definitely, nobody will forget their goalie Kevin Trapp, who won the Player of the Match award in the final of this tournament. The German goalkeeper not only saved one goal with his foot in the penalty shootout of the final match, but he was always tough to beat even under pressure situations.
Incredible passionate fans
While Frankfurt players have given everything on the field, the fans have provided true support by always encouraging the team. Whether the fans are inside the stadium or outside the stadium, they always backed the players despite their struggle during the entire domestic season.
Just like the other finalists’ Rangers, Frankfurt fans also got around 9000 tickets for that historic final. But the fans always tried their best to somehow gain more tickets for that game. In the meantime, more than 50,000 people watched live that historic final from Deutsche Bank Park, the home venue of the Eagles.
Surely, this incredible 12th man support played a huge role for the German club to end their 42-year wait for European trophy success.
Great learning for other clubs
The German Bundesliga club can inspire many clubs with their recent achievement. No matter which team you are facing in which stage of a tournament, self-belief and hard work with the proper focus can always help a team to bring success.
