The anticipation is huge. "For us, an extraordinary highlight game is just around the corner." Oliver Glasner is in a great mood when he says this the day before the cracker against Napoli. Champions League, round of sixteen, first leg: The press room in the Frankfurt Arena is full to bursting. Two hours earlier, when Eintracht completed their final training, half a dozen camera teams and a total of around 50 journalists were there.

Ralf Weitbrecht

Sports editor.

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What they got to see in the morning, clarified Eintracht coach Glasner at lunchtime: Whether Sebastian Rode, who is still ill against Bremen, will be there against the upcoming Italian football champions will only be decided at short notice. "He's already feeling better, he's moving into the squad. But there is no way he will be there from the beginning." But maybe a little later, when it may be necessary to make corrections in the statics of the Frankfurt game. The captain is exactly the right man for this.

It was thanks to him that in the decisive premier class group game away at Sporting Lisbon the turnaround and the associated entry into the knockout phase succeeded. Rode as a "game changer", just as he did in the other big game of his career, the Europa League final against Glasgow, and sacrificed himself for the team.

Glasner: "We are playing for victory"

The respect for Naples, for Maradona's heirs, is great. But Glasner is still firmly on course. "We're playing for victory. Napoli are a very good, stable team, but so are we. My boys are in very good shape." One of Glasner's "boys" sits together with the Austrian football coach on the podium in the catacombs of the arena. Mario Götze, the most experienced of all Frankfurt's premier league players, answers questions calmly, calmly and confidently. "We put a lot of work into this campaign," he says. "Now we want to reward ourselves and enjoy it." The 30-year-old thinker and leader of the offensive Eintracht game hopes for a "sensational game".

Glasner and his team of assistants have spent many hours taking a close look at SSC Napoli and preparing to the best of their knowledge and belief for the two knockout matches against the men from Vesuvius. "There is an excellent balance in this team. They have by far the fewest goals in Serie A."

Napoli are not only the best team in Italy, Napoli is currently also the best and most in-form team in Europe. A big chunk. Nevertheless, Glasner is in good spirits. "I'm going into this game with great anticipation, confidence and confidence." Against a team he describes as "anti-Italian". "They are very aggressive against the ball, have high pressing and insane counter-pressing." In other words, Eintracht has not yet met an opponent of such quality this season. Götze is not driven crazy by the undisputed quality of the sovereign Italian championship leader. "It's the momentum that counts," he says. "Performance, flow, energy – everything is important."

It's all about the attitude. And, of course, on the line-up and on players who will perform at their best this Tuesday evening (21:00 in the F.A.Z. live ticker for the Champions League and Prime Video). Whether Kristijan Jakic can give the middle man in the three-man defensive chain, as he did in the Bundesliga core business against Bremen, or whether the much more experienced Makoto Hasebe should intelligently open the Eintracht game from behind – Glasner left it open on Monday, as expected. "I can choose between players who are all in good shape," he says diplomatically.

Untypical for the otherwise level-headed coach was his statement, which briefly caused greater laughter. "The team is hot as fry fat." Glasner had never said anything like this during his work, and it may underline the importance of this outstanding game. Knockout rounds in the Champions League – this also means that Eintracht is one of the 16 best teams in Europe. The label Champions League – it can be seen everywhere in the arena. In the underground car park, diligent helpers have even covered traditional Eintracht sponsors with black and instead attached the king's class lettering.

Eintracht have big plans for the games against Napoli. The Italians have only been defeated twice this season in regular time – by Inter Milan and Liverpool FC. "We want to be third," says Glasner. "We don't see dangers behind every door," said the Frankfurt coach, to complete: "but opportunities." The chance to achieve something extraordinary in the club's history. Götze says: "Champions League is a sensationally good competition." And Eintracht is still right in the middle of it.