Following Eintracht Frankfurt’s latest frustrating Bundesliga outcome – a squandered two-goal lead against relegation-threatened Köln on Sunday – coach Albert Riera avoided direct confrontation regarding Mario Götze. Instead, he channeled his energy into an intense post-match press conference, delivering a passionate discourse on themes of ‘anger, love, and anxiety.’
Previously, Riera had reacted defensively to questions about Götze’s absence from the starting XI before the international break. Since then, the German World Cup winner signed a contract extension and reappeared as a substitute. Riera now appears to have adopted a more circumspect approach, offering generalized responses when asked about specific players like Götze, Can Uzun, and Jonathan Burkardt.
However, when pressed on Eintracht’s record of just three wins in eight Bundesliga matches under his leadership, Riera consistently deflected blame towards the preceding coaching tenure of Dino Toppmöller. He emphasized his ongoing efforts to eradicate a ‘losing mentality’ from his squad.
Riera’s Impassioned Address: On ‘Solving the Problem’ and ‘Baggage’
Riera began by stating, “It’s easy to analyze to the game.” He characterized Köln as a ‘goalkeeping team’ due to their long ball strategy from the keeper, lamenting, “We stopped winning duals and they scored goals because of that. We scored two goals and then we conceded two goals.” What began as a seemingly straightforward assessment evolved into a nearly five-minute monologue. Throughout the press conference, Riera persistently invoked the notion of ‘seven months of baggage,’ asserting that he had inherited a challenging situation from his predecessor, Dino Toppmöller.
When questioned about his anger or disappointment, Riera countered, “If I were to be angry with them, what will I gain? They need my love, options, and feedback on how to do better. Tomorrow, the first thing I’ll give them is love and support.” He even expressed a peculiar satisfaction with their previous loss to Mainz before the international break, stating, “The last game that we lost… against Mainz made me happy because I know why we lost.”
He elaborated on problem-solving: “If we know we can solve the situation… In life, if you can’t identify the problem, you have a [bigger] problem because you have to solve the problem and you don’t know how to do it. Here, I know what the problem is and I know how we can do better. I know what, how, and with whom. I can’t guarantee a timeframe for fixing the problem.”
Riera connected current performance to past issues: “We’re carrying the baggage of seven months of disappointment. And now in two or three months we have to solve the problem of disappointment and anxiety. I told my players that they are playing with anxiety. They’re playing too fast and in a hurry. When we leading 2-0, we needed to be defending the ball. Instead, we kept losing the ball because we were playing in too much of a hurry.”
He stressed the importance of strategic pacing: “When we play too quickly accidents happen… We need to understand when to play fast, when to accelerate, and when to pause.” Riera made a bold claim regarding the team’s defensive frailties upon his arrival in February: “We were the worst team in Europe when it came conceding goals when I came in February. Not in the Bundesliga, in all of Europe. I can prove it.” He reiterated the need to overcome inherited ‘frustration and disappointment’ and foster a positive outlook.
Concluding his passionate address, Riera affirmed his dedication: “This is my job. Negativity? No. Not with my players. We need to win the next three points. That’s how I’m going to prepare this team and these players.” He acknowledged the internal struggle: “I can see that they are playing with this [fear] inside. This is a massive club with high expectations that was playing Champions League. I love this club, but we must solve the disappointments of the last seven months.”
Riera’s Evasive Response on Mario Götze
When directly questioned about Mario Götze, Riera offered a diplomatic reply: “Football is about today… Every match is different. I put different players on the tactics board based on my demands. My demands are that players do their job on and off the ball. Mario didn’t play one day, but will play another day. Some players didn’t play today because they didn’t fit or didn’t meet those demands.”
