“A smile and a tear.”

Speaking at a presser ahead of Wednesday’s UEFA Super Cup meeting with Real Madrid in Helsinki, Eintracht Frankfurt head-coach Oliver Glasner commented on Filip Kostic’s impending departure. The SGE trainer also ruled out a change to his tactical system in the Serbian winger’s absence.

For Oliver Glasner, Filip Kostic’s soon-to-be-finalized transfer to Juventus generates mixed emotions. The SGE trainer admitted that losing a assist-meister of Kostic’s caliber certainly presented him with a challenge. It is such that the 47-year-old Austrian spoke of “a tear in one eye”

On the other hand, Glasner admitted at a Tuesday presser, there was some chuckling to be had when he considered the events of last autumn. Back then, the 29-year-old winger attempted to force a transfer to Lazio Rom by withdrawing from training and refusing to play.

Glasner, sporting director Markus Krösche, and the team leadership circle eventually welcomed Kostic back into the fold without punishment. Reminiscing on the time, Glasner revealed what he told his disaffected attacker during a face-to-face meeting.

“I said to him at the time: ‘If you ever leave Eintracht Frankfurt, you should leave it as a hero’,” Glasner mused, strongly insinuating that Kostic was doing so after helping the club achieve it’s historic Europa League crown, “That’s why I also have to smile.”

“It’s obvious that he has had a great impact on the offense,” Glasner also noted, “That we’re weakened with this loss is clear.”

Glasner specifically said that he had no plans to change his usual tactical set up in Wednesday night’s fixture. Europa League winners Eintracht square off against Champions’ League title holders Real Madrid at 21:00 Central European Time.

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