After spells at Borussia Mönchengladbach and Monaco, Adi Hütter has signed a three-year contract to replace Albert Riera at Eintracht Frankfurt, the club he guided into the latter stages of the UEFA Europa League and DFB Cup during his previous spell in charge.
We delve a little deeper into the life and times of the Austrian tactician…
Adi Hütter
Age: 56
Club: Eintracht Frankfurt
Role: Head coach
Country of birth: Austria
Key stats
Hütter represented Linz, Rheindorf Altach, Graz and Kapfenberg in an 18-year playing career, but it is his seven-year stint with Austria Salzburg which stands out. The former midfielder won three league titles, the Supercup and reached the 1993/94 UEFA Cup final with the club, who lost 2-0 on aggregate to Inter Milan in the showpiece.
After cutting his coaching teeth with the Salzburg youth team, Altach and Grödig, whom he steered to top-flight promotion in 2012/13, the former Austria international midfielder won the domestic double with the Salzburg first team in 2014/15 before joining Young Boys, whom he guided to a first Swiss Super League title since 1986 in his final campaign in charge.
Hütter’s debut season in the Frankfurt dugout was a runaway success. Fuelled by the goals of Luka Jović and Sébastien Haller, the Eagles narrowly missed out on the UEFA Champions League but accounted for the likes of Lazio, Shakhtar Donetsk, Inter Milan and Benfica in the UEFA Europa League, eventually losing on penalties to Chelsea in the semi-finals.
Concord pushed Bayern Munich all the way in the DFB Cup semi-finals the following season, but Hütter’s third and final campaign in charge was arguably his most successful. Inspired by the prolific André Silva, the Eagles missed out on the top four by a single point but secured a return to the Europa League – which they went on to win under Oliver Glasner the following season.
Hütter’s single campaign with Gladbach was not quite as rosy – although the Foals did enjoy a remarkable 5-0 victory over Bayern in the second round of the DFB Cup, which at the time was the Bavarians’ biggest defeat since 1978. After guiding the club to 10th place in the league, the Austrian signed a two-year deal with French side Monaco.
The principality club had missed out on European football altogether in 2022/23, but stormed to a second-placed Ligue 1 finish in Hütter’s first season at the helm, qualifying for the UEFA Champions League for the first time since 2018/19. A third-placed finish followed in 2024/25, but Hütter left the club afer a difficult start to the 2025/26 campaign. He re-signed for Frankfurt at the end of May 2026.
Coaches a bit like: Thomas Tuchel
Hütter took a leaf out of Italian tactician Antonio Conte’s playbook during his time in Frankfurt, deploying a three-man back line flanked by dyed-in-the-wool wingers – but the Austrian favoured a 4-2-3-1 formation at Gladbach and in his final season in Monaco. Like former Bayern and current England coach Tuchel, Hütter’s sides are renowned for their high-intensity pressing – and are not married to a single system.
“I like my teams to play aggressive football in a good way [and] to be proactive, with a clear idea of how to play,” Hütter explained at his unveiling as Monaco boss in 2023.
Did you know?
Frankfurt enjoyed a memorable Europa League campaign under Hütter in 2018/19, but the Hohenems native once put paid to Eintracht’s dream of continental glory during his playing days.
In the 1993/94 Europa League quarter-finals, Hütter scored the only goal in a first-leg victory over the Eagles before netting from the spot in the return-leg penalty shoot-out, as Salzburg set up a last-four showdown with then-Bundesliga side Karlsruhe.
What they’re saying
“Adi has shown that he can combine fast-paced transitional play with possession – particularly at Monaco, where he so effectively developed and stabilised one of the youngest teams in the league that they were able to establish themselves among the elite in France.” – Frankfurt board member for sport Markus Krösche
“Hütter’s style is similar to the aggressive role I performed while at Bayern. I really like his style of play.” – Former Bayern midfielder Eric Dier, who played under Hütter at Monaco
“He brought the club into the Champions League for the first time in five years. Six players in the current squad are from the academy. In Ligue 1 and in the Champions League, we have one of the youngest teams – and he’s getting results.” – Monaco CEO Thiago Scuro in a 2025 interview with The Team
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