Eintracht Frankfurt head coach Oliver Glasner thinks “the whole of Germany” will be behind his side as they host West Ham in the Europa League semi-finals on Thursday.

Frankfurt hold a slender lead going into the second leg at Deutsche Bank Park and Glasner is expecting the vociferous home crowd to help his side.

“We’ll play to win from the get-go with our fans behind us,” he said. “Our strategy must involve causing problems to the opposition defence. We need an even better performance than the first leg.

“I get the feeling that the whole of Germany are Eintracht fans in Europe. There’s recognition for our performances, but it’s not about living in the past - we need to stay focused.”

Frankfurt have slipped to 11th in the Bundesliga during their European run and can only qualify for European competition by winning the Europa League.

“We should not be distracted by any Bundesliga result but approach the game for what it is,” Glasner added.

“We expect a West Ham team that will try everything to win and reach the final. I told my players that our focus is to play to win.

"The order is clear: to play forward and to put the West Ham defence to the test.”

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Another aspect of Eintracht Frankfurt that the first leg will have given West Ham an insight into is the level of their support.

They travelled in numbers and were very, very boisterous at London Stadium. It's only going to be more full on tonight, inside the 51,500-capacity Deutsche Bank Park.

Here's a little heads up...

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Eintracht Frankfurt gave West Ham a clear demonstration of what they are all about at London Stadium last week.

Yes, Jarrod Bowen could have snatched a draw for the Hammers late on but in truth the German side were good for their win - organised and a constant threat on the counter-attack. Those wins over Real Betis and Barcelona in previous rounds were no fluke.

West Ham did show, though, that they can hurt Frankfurt. And they can draw a huge amount of encouragement from the way they took Lyon apart in France in the quarter-finals.

This tie is not over by a long shot.

This Frankfurt ground is a sea of white and black-clad supporters. There's over 50,000 fans in here, bouncing, singing, ready to make this an absolute cauldron for West Ham.

Simon Stone
BBC Sport reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Eighteen years after they first met, Leicester boss Brendan Rodgers and Roma's Jose Mourinho will do battle for a place in the Europa Conference final.

Mourinho and Rodgers worked together during 'The Special One's' first spell in charge at Chelsea. Rodgers was a youth coach with the Blues after being brought in from Reading's academy in 2004, before going on to manage the likes of Swansea City, Liverpool and Celtic.

The encounter at the Stadio Olimpico has the potential to underline Rodgers' passing of Mourinho in the coaching hierarchy.

Not, obviously, in terms of career achievement. With eight league titles across four countries and two Champions League triumphs the highlights of a silverware-laden career, Mourinho is well established as one of the greatest coaches of the modern era.

But Mourinho's last significant triumph was also Manchester United's last trophy, when they won the Europa League in 2017. So, for 59-year-old Mourinho, the Leicester game matters.

Leicester City

Leicester defender Jonny Evans on what it would mean to win the competition: "It's a difficult one because nobody has ever won the competition because it's the first year so it's very hard to gauge how it's going to be received.

"Whenever we sat down in the canteen one day after training to watch the draw and saw the list of teams that had gone up we were all looking thinking there were some unbelievable names in there.

"I remember looking thinking I would love one of the Dutch teams and obviously we got PSV and then you've got teams like Roma in there. It was amazing when you looked at the board.

"I think the manager used that moment to get us all together and watch the draw and we all watched it together and it kind of made us realise that this is a competition that will be fantastic if we go all the way."

Image source, Getty Images

Earlier this week Leicester City's Jonny Evans made it clear he wanted to stay at the club for as long as possible.

The Northern Ireland defender is out of contract next summer and has struggled with injuries over the past two years.

"Definitely, I've been really happy here," the 34-year-old said at the prospect of signing a new contract.

"There's nothing about this place that wouldn't make you want to stay here and play football."

James Collins
Former West Ham defender on BBC Radio 5 Live

This is West Ham's biggest game in recent history.

I wasn't overly impressed with them last Thursday. They were a little surprised by how Frankfurt played and tried to win the game.

If the big-game players perform, they can really go and show what they're capable of.

Charlie Slater
BBC East Midlands Today reporter in Rome

With Leicester City an underwhelming 11th in the Premier League table, tonight’s match is surely their biggest game of the season and their best chance of qualifying for Europe again.

Going in to this second leg it’ll be tight on the banks of the Tiber after the first leg ended honours even. With a European final at stake there’s plenty on the line as Jose Mourinho and Brendan Rodgers meet again (I wonder if Jose will be as generous with his gift to Brendan as the Northern Irishman was last week?!).

A crowd in excess of 70,000 people will be at the Stadio Olimpico, including 4,000 Foxes fans.

While Roma are favourites to qualify for the first-ever Europa Conference League final most supporters I’ve spoken to, be they Italian or English, are expecting a close game and nobody is willing to put their neck on the line either way.

Image source, Getty Images

The Europa Conference League may be the third tier of continental club competition behind the Champions League and Europa League, but it represents the Foxes' chance of a first piece of European silverware.

"It's a European trophy," Leicester goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel said.

"Every one is important, every competition you can win is important. I don't play football to finish fourth, fifth or sixth. You do it for the occasions, regardless of competitions.

"It's about winning trophies. That's what fans and players look back on, those moments when you got to lift trophies."

Pat Nevin
Former Scotland winger on BBC Radio 5 Live

It's one of those nights you think special things can happen.

The ultras have been in a long time. They cannot wait.

Eintracht don't always play to their best in front of their own fans. West Ham will feel the noise but they should love that. They should be lifted and not intimidated.

Image source, Getty Images

Former Chelsea and Scotland winger Pat Nevin has backed West Ham to overturn the first-leg deficit in their Europa League semi-final against Eintracht Frankfurt.

Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live's Football Daily podcast, Nevin says that although many have written the Hammers off, he believes in David Moyes' side.

"I've known Moyes since he was 14 - he's a leader and a winner," Nevin said. "He is confident going into this and he absolutely believes they will win.

"I think they will do it for a number of reasons. They're a good team, the style of the game away from home will suit them and they have nothing to lose so can just go for it.

"They have rested players coming into this so hopefully have players that are fit.

"On top of that, Frankfurt do have some weaknesses, especially at the Deutscher Park Stadium, where their home record is really poor. They have only won one of their last 10 games and that brings its own pressure."

Nevin also described England midfielder Declan Rice as "gold dust" and that winning the Europa League will be vital to keeping him at London Stadium.

"He's the type of player you try to build your club around," he said. "He can play centre-back, central midfield, attacking midfield - it's like having three different players.

"Then with his personality on top - it's no surprise he's very important to them."

Listen to a preview of West Ham's game from 21'40 on BBC Sounds

Image source, Reuters

James Jones, We Are West Ham, external

After decades of disappointment, frustration, anger and underachievement, it all comes down to this for West Ham.

Hammers fans have endured a torrid time over the years, particularly since the move from Upton Park to London Stadium in 2016. We moved reluctantly to Stratford because we were promised it would spark a new era of success in east London. We were promised "a world-class team in a world-class stadium." We were promised it would get better. Six years on, those promises are finally being delivered.

Having suffered relegation battles, poor investment in the playing squad and just general mediocrity for so long, it's somewhat hard to process that we're on the brink of a first European final in 46 years.

This may have been promised as part of the stadium move, but not a single West Ham fan saw this coming, especially when David Moyes returned to the club and we went into the pandemic just a point above the relegation zone.

Two years later, we're on the brink of something we never, ever thought was possible. Whatever happens in Frankfurt, we are all so proud of this football club right now and have enjoyed every single moment of this journey we've unexpectedly been on.

West Ham fans deserve this and so do David Moyes and his players. Let's hope this journey ends in Seville.

David Moyes says the "mentality change" has been "incredible" in West Ham's players since he first joined the club - but has urged them now to reach the next level.

"There are a lot of nice things said about our league position, but I'm still saying I've got to find a way of driving those players onto another level and making sure we're in a final," said Moyes, who arrived at London Stadium for a second spell in charge of the Hammers in 2019.

"If I don't do that, we've got to make sure we're fifth or sixth in the league so we can go through this process again. This is West Ham trying to grow.

"Our league games have just slid away a little bit, but it's quite difficult to concentrate on the Thursday game and Sunday game and get them correct, so let's hope we can do something tomorrow night.

"The climb over the two years has probably been faster and sometimes you have to come down a little bit to go again. Hopefully, we continue to build."

Image source, Getty Images

It's nicely poised in Rome as Leicester travel to the Stadio Olimpico for their Europa Conference League semi-final second leg.

The teams drew 1-1 at the King Power and Brendan Rodgers will be hoping his side can get over the line in Italy against his former teacher Jose Mourinho.

The Foxes have never reached a European tournament final. If they win in Rome they will play Feyenoord or Marseille in the final in Tirana, Albania on 25 May.

This is what it's all about.

Whatever your views on the new Europa League Conference League, these Leicester City fans are loving every second on tour in Rome.

Getting the sights in... in Blue.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Michail Antonio says he would rather have played in recent Premier League matches than be rested by David Moyes.

With Moyes opting not to risk certain players before recent Europa League ties, Antonio has not featured in the Hammers' last three league games.

He told the Footballer's Football Podcast: "Especially because I hadn’t scored in a few months I wanted to be involved in the games.

"Obviously the gaffer doesn’t want to risk too many players and with me being the only striker he feels it is best to make sure I don't pick up something and not get to play.

"I understand why he has done it but for me I would prefer to have played in the games, especially because I scored and with another game coming so quickly I could have played and hopefully scored and carried on.

"With me, when you get one you kind of go on a run but obviously it didn’t happen. I’ve still got confidence in training and have been bagging goals and hopefully I can bring that into Thursday’s game."

Antonio believes the Hammers have shown in this European run that they have the character to overcome Eintracht Frankfurt and reach the final.

He said: "Every game that we have had to go for in the Europa League, we have come out and won it. We were 1-0 down against Sevilla, we came home and won it. It was 1-1 against Lyon, we went there and had to go for it and won it.

"Now it’s happened again, we are 2-1 down and we have to go for it now. I believe we will win it."

Listen to the podcast in full on BBC Sounds

BBC Radio 5 Live

We'll be covering both of the semi-finals featuring English teams in this live text commentary, so if you're a West Ham or Leicester fan you are in the right spot.

There's more, though, on the BBC.

Our colleagues in Scotland are covering the other semi-final in the Europa League, between Rangers and RB Leipzig, via a separate live text commentary, which you can find here.

You have radio options too tonight. Coverage of the night's games on 5 Live starts at 19:00 BST for build-up, followed by full commentary of the West Ham game from 20:00, with updates from Leicester.

Brendan Rodgers makes two changes to his Leicester side that drew 1-1 against Roma in the first leg of the Europa Conference League semi-final.

Timothy Castagne and Marc Albrighton both move to the bench, replaced by James Justin and Harvey Barnes.

James Maddison and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall are both involved after sitting out Sunday's 3-1 defeat by Tottenham.

Starting XI: Schmeichel, Pereira, Evans, Fofana, Justin, Tielemans, Dewsbury-Hall, Maddison, Lookman, Barnes, Vardy

Jose Mourinho opts for just the one Roma change from the first leg - Henrikh Mkhitaryan makes way for Sergio Oliveira.

Starting XI: Rui Patricio, Ibanez, Smalling, Mancini, Karsdorp, Cristante, Sergio, Pellegrini, Zalewski, Zaniolo, Abraham

West Ham make one change from the first leg as Vladimir Coufal replaces Ben Johnson at right-back.

It is four changes from Sunday's 2-1 defeat by Arsenal - with Alphonse Areola, Craig Dawson, Tomas Soucek and Michail Antonio coming back in.

Eintracht Frankfurt make two tweaks from last week's win in London.

Evan N'Dicka and Jens Petter Hauge replace Jesper Lindstrom and Almamy Toure.

That is six changes from the loss to Bayer Leverkusen last weekend.

Eintracht Frankfurt: Trapp, Tuta, Hinteregger, N'Dicka, Knauff,Sow, Rode, Kostic, Hauge, Borre, Kamada. Subs: Jakic, Hrustic,Lammers, Toure, Hasebe, Ache, Chandler, Da Costa, Lenz, Barkok,Grahl, Paciencia.

West Ham: Areola, Coufal, Dawson, Zouma, Cresswell, Soucek,Rice, Fornals, Bowen, Antonio, Lanzini. Subs: Fabianski,Yarmolenko, Vlasic, Noble, Benrahma, Diop, Fredericks, Masuaku,Johnson, Kral, Randolph, Alese.