By Oliver Trust
BERLIN, April 2 (Xinhua) -- When thinking about excitement in German club football, one hardly comes up with Borussia Dortmund or Bayern Munich. With the Bundesliga's Classico this Saturday only days away, both the Blacks and Yellows (as the league's leaders), and the Bavarians (as the runners-up) seem to want to carry their load.
Talking about easiness and pure joy, one has to speak about Eintracht Frankfurt, a side that secretly sneaked up to the big clubs having captured a Champions League position with a fourth-place ranking.
Dortmund and Bayern already received their kick in the rear in the Champions League. The current third of the league RB Leipzig failed to survive in the Euro League which makes the team of Austrian coach Adi Huetter Germany's last remaining club in international competition as early as in springtime.
Frankfurt reached the last 8-round of the Euro League facing Benfica after having beaten Inter Milan, Lazio Rome, and Olympique Marseilles.
It is still seven games to go for the 2018 German Cup winner to reach the finish line. Meanwhile it would be a disappointment not to enter the Champions League. The growing expectations don't seem to be a burden, but a challenge causing excitement.
"We developed a taste for it and don't intend to give up our position," midfielder Sebastian Rode commented.
The 28-year-old is a shining example as Frankfurt's squad is full of performers taking their second chance or facing the opportunity of their lifetime. Rode failed to break through in Dortmund and Bayern. In Frankfurt, he turned into the team's life-guard ahead of the back row.
Head of the defense is 35-year-old Japanese Makoto Hasebe. Austrian defender Martin Hinteregger was fired by FC Augsburg only months ago. Goalkeeper Kevin Trapp lost his place at Paris St Germain and has developed into one of the Bundesliga's best.
Several key-words might tell Frankfurt's inspiring story this season, a vital one is the perfect human resource management. Fredi Bobic, 47-year-old board member, and sports director Bruno Huebner, mainly discovered footballers cruising below universal radar screening.
Some of their acquisitions are causing growing interest in Europe's best clubs. Luka Jovic, a 21-year-old striker, the top issue on the list of Barcelona, Real Madrid and several Premier League sides, is said to be worth up to 60 million euros having scored 16 league goals.
Back at Red Star Belgrade, the Serbian international was seen as a young rogue who failed to make it to Benfica's first team afterward. Jovic is part of Frankfurt's magic attacking trio aside of French Sebastien Haller (14 goals) and Croatian Ante Rebic (8).
Jovic, Haller, and Rebic are the spearheads of a team called a "herd of buffalos" due to their fast-forwarding style often coming along like a force of nature.
Even coach Huetter has taken his chance to prove his coaching qualities on a higher level. The 14 times capped former international might have won 2015 double with RB Salzburg and the 2018 Swiss title with Young Boys Bern but had to deal with the fact to follow after Niko Kovac who had won the 2018 German Cup before joining Bayern.
Unbeaten in the last 14 games, team and coach are riding the wave trying to create a happy end. "What is wrong with dreaming of the big shot," says Huetter. It is part of his approach to "always think positive and talk positive," the former professional emphasizes.
