Eintracht Frankfurt U19 1 Tottenham Hotspur U19 0 - UEFA Youth league, Group Stage
Frankfurt is located on both
sides of the river Main, south-east of the Taunus mountain range. The southern part
of the city contains the Frankfurt City Forest, Germany’s largest city forest. Frankfurt
hosts the largest financial centre in continental Europe. It is home to the
European Central Bank, Deutsche Bundesbank, Frankfurt Stock exchange and
several large commercial banks. The Frankfurt Stock Exchange is one of the
world’s largest stock exchanges by market capitalization and accounts for more
than 90 percent of the turnover of the German market. The city is divided into
46 districts, which in turn are dived into 121 city boroughs and 448 electoral
districts.
Dreieich is a town in the Offenbach district in Hessen. The town is part of the Frankfurt Rhein-Main urban area and is located 6 miles south of Frankfurt. With a population of more than 40,000 it is the district’s second largest town. The town’s name comes from a royal hunting forest, first reference in the 9th century.
The primary reason for this
excursion (thanks for driving Kevin) to Germany was to watch Eintracht
Frankfurt v Tottenham Hotspur in the UEFA Champion League. Although the venue
for that match (Waldstadion) is covered elsewhere on Pie and Mushy Peas
following my visit in 1982, the parallel competition (UEFA Youth League)
provided an opportunity to visit a new ground. Sportpark Dreieich is a purpose
built ground for Eintracht Frankfurt II.
On arrival at Dreieich station I
was prepared for a half an hour walk to the ground, but Ciderman and I were
fortunate to be able to take advantage of a very conveniently timed shuttle bus, waiting at the station. We were the only passengers and could not help
marvelling at the German efficiency in providing this complimentary service. We
also negotiated with the driver our return journey.
The 3500 capacity stadium boasts
two covered seated stands. These are situated along the sides of the pitch. There
was also an impressive corporate hospitality area located at the back of the
stand where we were sitting. An unused section of raised terracing is located
behind one of the goals. Also at this end of the ground are the changing
facilities and the media lounge. The opposite end of the ground has no
spectator facilities. Additional refreshment
facilities for spectators are situated near the entrance to the venue and it
will have been here that Peter Lee purchased his hot dog.
The match was a closely contested
affair with the young Spurs side giving a decent account of themselves without
creating too many chances. Ferri Julia’s headed goal gave the hosts the lead on
25 minutes. Some poor officiating denied the visitors the chance to level on 35
minutes when Jamie Donley was clearly tripped in the box. I saw it and told the
referee Milos Gigovic as much!
This was a far better performance
by Spurs than the previous match in Lisbon and they did finish strongly. It
will be interesting to see the reverse of this fixture at Hotspur Way. Our
shuttle bus was waiting for us at the end of the match and on this occasion we
shared the journey with some Eintracht Frankfurt staff, before catching the
train back to the centre where the Curry Wurst and beer were waiting!
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