German Born Ghanaian Winger Ansgar Knauff Wins Europa League Cup With Frankfurt

German Born Ghanaian Winger Ansgar Knauff Wins Europa League Cup With Frankfurt

Isaac Darko
updated at April 12, 2023 at 8:02 PM
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  • German-born Ghanaian forward Ansgar Knauff featured as Eintracht Frankfurt defeated Glasgow Rangers to win the Europa League
  • The on-loan Dortmund winger played the full duration of the game at the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan Stadium on Wednesday evening
  • Knauff's two goals and one assist in the competition helped send Eintracht Frankfurt to their first European title since 1980

Germany-born forward of Ghanaian descent Ansgar Knauff has won the 2021/22 Europa League title with Eintracht Frankfurt.

The 20-year-old was influential for Oliver Glasner's side as they defeated Rangers FC 5-4 on penalties after the tie ended 1-1 at the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán Stadium in Seville.

Knauff, who is on loan from Borussia Dortmund, played the entire duration of the game when they locked horns with the Scottish giants in the final of this season’s Europa League.

Ansgar Knauff, Frankfurt, Rangers, Europa League
Ansgar Knauff of Frankfurt celebrates after his sides victory in the penalty shoot out during the UEFA Europa League final against Rangers. Photo by Alex Pantling
Source: Getty Images

This is the first time Eintracht Frankfurt have won an European Cup competition in 42 years. Their last victory came in 1980 when they defeated rivals Borussia Mönchengladbach on away goals to win the UEFA Cup.

The Ghana FA has reportedly opened talks with Knauff over a possible nationality switch from Germany to Ghana ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

How Frankfurt defeated Rangers

The Gers opened the scoring via Englishman Joe Aribo in the 57th minute, before Colombian Rafael Santos Borre equalised 12 minutes later in the 69th minute.

After Welshman Aaron Ramsey had his penalty saved by man-of-the-match Kevin Trapp, Santos Borre stepped up to blast the ball past Allan McGregor and send what was a quarter of the stadium into delirium.

The cup win was Die Adler's second in the competition's history, having first done so in the 1979-80 season. The last team from Germany to win the tournament before tonight was Schalke 04 in 1997, when they defeated Inter Milan 4-1 on penalties after the two-legged final ended 1-1.

Ghana Target Ansgar Knauff Helps Frankfurt Reach First European Final in Forty Two years

Sports Brief earlier reported that Eintracht Frankfurt star Ansgar Knauff featured in their UEFA Europa League clash against English side West Ham on Thursday.

The Ghana target provided an assist as his German side recorded a 1-0 on the night and 3-1 on aggregate in the semi-final of the UEFA Europa League.

Frankfurt will now lock horns against Scottish giants Glasgow Rangers in the final on May 18 in Seville, Spain.

Authors
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Isaac Darko
Isaac Darko is a La Liga, Ligue 1 and Bundesliga editor at Sports Brief with a Degree in Journalism and Communications from Ghana Institute of Journalism (2010)
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