Hecking bemoans Wolfsburg´s poor finishing

Wolfsburg coach Dieter Hecking did not sugar-coat his team’s 1-1 draw with Eintracht Frankfurt, conceding they did not deserve to win.

Wolfsburg coach Dieter Hecking blamed his team’s poor finishing for their 1-1 draw at Eintracht Frankfurt that meant they missed an opportunity to gain further ground on Bayern Munich.

Having thumped Bayern 4-1 to resume their 2014-15 Bundesliga campaign, Wolfsburg could have reduced the Bavarians’ lead to six points on Tuesday with a win in Frankfurt.

Bayern gave up a lead in Munich to draw 1-1 with Schalke in a concurrent match but second-placed Wolfsburg failed to capitalise, as Hecking’s men needed an 88th-minute strike from Kevin De Bruyne to reel in Eintracht.

While Eintracht (12) attempted more shots at home, Wolfsburg (nine) still had chances to score more than one goal but only hit the target twice, which frustrated Hecking.

“It was a fair draw. We have not clearly played good enough to win in Frankfurt,” he said, according to Wolfsburg’s website.

“Especially in the first half we had four or five good counterattack situations, but we did not play to the end, and we were lacking something in front of goal.”

Eintracht hit the front just before the hour mark when Stefan Aigner finished off Takashi Inui’s good lead-up work but Wolfsburg claimed a point when De Bruyne slotted past Kevin Trapp from Marcel Shafer’s cross with two minutes remaining.

Hecking hailed his team’s persistence: “We did not play as well as we can but that we still created a late equalizer also shows the strength of us that we can come back again and again.”

Shafer did not deny that some of the club’s fans might be disappointed by Wolfsburg’s inability to move closer to Bayern in the Bundesliga standings.

“We came here to get three points but considering the pattern of play and the timing of our equaliser, we have to be satisfied with a point,” the full-back said, according to the Bundesliga’s website.

“We’ve got four points from two games now, so it’s a good – if not a brilliant – start to the second half of the season.

“Expectations are very high following our win over Bayern but we’ve got to learn to cope with those expectations if we want to stay near the top of the league.”

Eintracht goalkeeper Trapp encapsulated his team’s frustration with having to settle for a draw after the match, as the Frankfurt side’s winless run stretched to five games.

“Wolfsburg are a quality side and they’re obviously a big threat going forward but it’s very, very frustrating to concede such a late equaliser,” the 24-year-old said.

“It’s a right kick in the teeth and we obviously left the field disappointed.”