RB coach Tedesco fled
Glasgow Rangers fans take over Leipzig
04/28/2022, 10:07 am
For the semi-finals in the Europa League, the fans of Glasgow Rangers invade the Saxony metropolis of Leipzig. The local club RB doesn’t want to be bothered by this and already move into a final again. The chances of that happening are very good.
Beer, party atmosphere and the loud chorus of loud-voiced fans: Domenico Tedesco voluntarily avoided the Scottish spectacle that was rolling towards Leipzig. “We still live in a very good hotel in the city center. I was told that 200 fans will come to this hotel, and I’ll stay at the academy for the next two days,” said the RB coach on Wednesday with a laugh .
Leipzig is in view of the semi-final first leg of the Europa League against Glasgow Rangers today (9 p.m./RTL+ and in the live ticker on ntv.de) an invasion of the Scots. Up to 8,000 fans from the island have registered for the international highlight, even though officially only 2,600 tickets went to the guests.
The duel with the BVB conqueror is likely to become a German-Scottish football festival – and should be the cornerstone for Leipzig’s ticket to Seville. “We want to get to the final. We’ve already achieved one thing, now we want to get the second,” said Tedesco, who is with RB in the final of the DFB Cup on May 21 against SC Freiburg. The winner of the Europa League will be determined three days earlier in Spain – and Leipzig can already secure the first title in the club’s young history there.
Assistant coach Hinkel is a Glasgow expert
Leipzig is considered a favourite. However, the duel with the Scottish champions will not be a sure-fire success. The Rangers are a very physical team that acts offensively on the wings. “They knocked Borussia Dortmund out of the competition, that says a lot,” said Tedesco, who may switch to a back four defensively because of the suspensions for Mohamed Simakan and Willi Orban. In any case, the semi-finals will only be decided in the second leg on May 5 in Glasgow.
Tedesco was excited about the trip a week in advance. He enthused enthusiastically about the city, the Highlands, the Old Firm. According to Tedesco, Scotland is “a country that loves football”. Assistant coach Andreas Hinkel can confirm that. As a player, he was under contract with Rangers rivals Celtic Glasgow for over three years. The contact to the old home and the “heart city” Glasgow has never been completely broken.
RB should help Hinkel’s knowledge of Scottish football. The Scottish league is “more physical” than the Bundesliga, says Hinkel, and Rangers also have “a good mentality.” Glasgow’s Dutch team boss Giovanni van Bronckhorst sees it the same way. And unlike Tedesco, he is looking forward to the support of the appendages who have traveled with him. “That can be a factor,” said van Bronckhorst, “then it always feels a bit like a home game.”