Daichi Gamada, who suffered from a goal drought, scored after three months. The player who recorded the assist was not a fellow striker, but Japanese senior defender Makoto Hasebe.
Eintracht Frankfurt, which held the semifinals of the 2022-2023 DFB Pokal at the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Stuttgart, Germany on the 4th (Korean time) won Stuttgart 3-2.
Frankfurt advances to the final and competes with RB Leipzig for the championship. The final will be held at the Olympiastadion in Berlin on 4 June.
Frankfurt has been suffering from a slump in the regular league recently. Frankfurt won the European Football Federation (UEFA) Europa League last season, and based on this, they participated in the UEFA Champions League (UCL) this season and achieved the desired result of advancing to the round of 16.
Although their power is strong, their performance declined towards the end of the season, and criticism was raised that the players who were about to transfer lacked motivation. Striker Gamada and defender Evan Ndica are all nearing the end of their contracts, while striker Randall Colomouani is receiving offers from other clubs. It is a situation that can be criticized that the players have become hazy.
What led to the victory over Stuttgart was, exquisitely, the players with strong transfers. In the 6th minute of the second half, Ndika scored the equalizer. Four minutes later, Gamada scored a come-from-behind goal, and in the 32nd minute of the second half, Kolomuani’s penalty kick was the key goal. They conceded a goal at the end of the game, but kept the victory.
Among them, Gamada was criticized for not focusing on soccer as there was no goal news for about three months after scoring in early February, and only news that he was negotiating with various clubs during this period continued. In the meantime, he received Hasebe’s pass and, after a brilliant dribble, put a right-footed shot into the corner of the goal, giving the team another chance to win. Frankfurt, which is still in ninth place in the German Bundesliga, must aim for a ticket to the Europa League by winning the Pokal if it wants to compete in the European competition next season as well.
The fact that Kamada’s goal was assisted by fellow Japanese player Hasebe is part of fate. Although veteran Hasebe is not a built-in starter this season, he is included in the starting lineup at every important moment, playing the role of a three-back sweeper better than anyone else. On this day, before Gamada started breaking through, he handed a pass and recorded an assist.안전놀이터
Hasebe played this game at the age of 39 years and 105 days. This is the oldest assist record for Focal within the scope that soccer statistics company ‘OPTA’ can compile detailed records. The previous record was 37 years and 104 days, set by Oliver Neuville in 2010.
Hasebe, who advanced to Wolfsburg in Germany in 2008, also built a friendship with Korean midfielder Koo Ja-cheol, who joined later. Since then, he has been playing in Frankfurt via Nuremberg, and is recognized as a representative example of a long run after advancing to Europe, being recognized for his excellent body management and his professional consciousness.