Eintracht glad to be back

After a long absence from continental competition, 1979/80 UEFA Cup winners Eintracht Frankfurt are looking for a flying start at home to Brøndby IF in tonight's first-round tie.

New philosophy
Having hosted FIFA World Cup matches during the summer, the city of Frankfurt is set for more excitement in 2006/07 as the team nicknamed 'The Moody Diva' look to muster another magical European moment with a new-look side and a fresh footballing philosophy.

Youth policy
Since former German league chief Heribert Bruchhagen took command at Eintracht in 2003, a wind of change has blown through the club. Eintracht have forged a policy of nurturing local talent and, with academy graduates Patrick Ochs, Jan Zimmermann, Daniyel Cimen, Christopher Reinhard, Marco Russ, Mounir Chaftar, Christoph Preuss, Albert Streit, Jermaine Jones and Faton Toski all in the squad, this is bearing fruit.

Useful additions
Greek internationals Ioannis Amanatidis and Sotirios Kyrgiakos and 23-year-old playmaker Alexander Meier have been signed to supplement their promise, and with the World Cup having bequeathed Eintracht a fabulous new stadium, the mood is positive. "We are building a future here at Frankfurt," said captain Jermaine Jones. "We have a very young team. The way Bruchhagen, coach Friedhelm Funkel and the coaching staff are working at the moment is great."

Glorious final
Having won their only German title to date in 1958/59, Eintracht were losing finalists in the 1959/60 European Champion Clubs' Cup, going down 7-3 against a peerless Real Madrid CF side in a game at Hampden Park remembered by eyewitness Sir Alex Ferguson as one which "epitomised all the dreams of European football".

Schaub strike
German Cup successes and good league placings have taken Eintracht into Europe plenty of times since, with the high point being an away goals victory following a 3-3 aggregate draw against Bundesliga rivals VfL Borussia Mönchengladbach in the 1979/80 UEFA Cup final - Eintracht substitute Fred Schaub famously scored the only goal in the all-important second leg.

Dramatic finale
However, since 1994/95, the continental trail has gone cold. The past decade has seen Eintracht relegated from the Bundesliga on three occasions where once they were fixtures in the top half of the table. There have been dramatic matches - not least the 5-1 triumph against 1. FC Kaiserslautern that spared them demotion on the last day of the 1998/99 season - but no European nights.

Worrying tie
It is hardly surprising, then, that there is a huge sense of anticipation about the club's return to the UEFA Cup. The injured Jones said: "The boys just have to get past Brøndby, because I desperately want to play in the group stage." However, as coach Funkel knows only too well, the 2005/06 Superligaen runners-up will be no pushovers. "It's a difficult tie," he said. "I have great respect for Danish football in general and especially for Brøndby."