Our Verdict on This Summer’s Possible Exits

Eintracht Frankfurt are planning to mostly keep the squad together for next season, to avoid another rebuild. However, as Timmo Hardung recently confirmed, there will definitely be a few changes to the team. I have taken a look at some players who could leave this summer to give my verdict on what Eintracht Frankfurt should do with each of them. 

NIELS NKOUNKOU

After some promising matches in his first season at the club many fans expected Niels Nkounkou to take the next step in his development and possibly become a key player for Dino Toppmöller. Unfortunately, the opposite has been the case. In the past season Nkounkou only played 946 minutes. That equals just ten and a half 90-minute matches and isn’t even half of the minutes he played the season before. The Frenchman quickly went from starter to super-sub to hardly getting any minutes at all towards the end of the season.

Nkounkou lacks the decision making and off the ball movement that makes his competitor Nathaniel Brown stand out. He’s also too inconsistent in his performances. However, I do believe that he has the ability and the potential to thrive in another team. At Eintracht Frankfurt I don’t see him becoming an important player anymore. That’s why it would be best for everyone involved to SELL Niels Nkounkou if we receive an offer of around €5m.  

PAXTEN AARONSON 

Paxten Aaronson enjoyed a great loan spell at Utrecht last season. The American recorded 15 goal involvements, despite playing in a deeper role than he did at Eintracht Frankfurt. I decided to include Aaronson in this post as there’s still no final certainty about him. I will make it short though, as I’m very sure that we should KEEP the 21-year-old. He will make a great substitute/squad player with the ambition to get into the starting lineup.

MO DAHOUD 

At some point of the past season it looked like Mo Dahoud could be a really valuable player for our team. I remember a post after our 7-2 win over Bochum in which I said it could be "Redemption Season" for Mo Dahoud. Well… it wasn’t. After said game, the 29-year-old still got some more appearances – until the winter break came and something changed. Mo Dahoud went on to play a combined 80 minutes in the current calendar year. It’s not known what happened, maybe it was just bad training performance, but it’s clear that Mo Dahoud doesn’t have a future at the club. Eintracht Frankfurt should SELL him, even if he won’t generate a lot of money.

JUNIOR DINA EBIMBE

Ebimbe only played 502 minutes across 12 matches this season, the last one being almost four months ago. The decision about the Frenchman is also quite clear: Eintracht Frankfurt should SELL Junior Dina Ebimbe. They could even make some money from a transfer as there’s serious interest from multiple French and Spanish clubs.

His development at Eintracht Frankfurt is really sad. I must admit that I was once a big fan and believer in Ebimbe. After a very promising first season at the club, it looked like he could become one of our best players. Unfortunately I was wrong. 

FARES CHAIBI 

Fares Chaibi was one of the most debated players of the past season. That was because Dino Toppmöller continued to bring Chaibi on in almost every game, despite lacking impact from the Algerian. What confused most fans was that Chaibi’s performances actually declined compared to last season. 

Despite all the justified criticism, I still believe Chaibi has more to show. His technical abilities, his vision and his creativity are all outstanding for a still just 22-year-old. It’s okay to have drops in form, however it’s also clear that Chaibi will need to step up next season. I would KEEP him at the club and put my trust in him for one more year. 

IGOR MATANOVIC 

When Igor Matanovic came back from an impressive loan spell at Karlsruhe last season, I was really hyped to finally see him play in an Eintracht Frankfurt shirt. A great preseason and a debut goal in the DFB Pokal got many fans excited. The idea with Matanovic was to add another dimension to our attack; someone more physical and aerially dominant. Unfortunately it just didn’t work out – not because Matanovic lacks the ability, but because Ektike and Marmoush were just way too good to be put on the bench. The counterattacking style was also not ideal for Matanovic. 

I don’t see any reasons for why it would get much better in his second season here. That’s why I believe we should SELL Matanovic for around €8m. Considering that we bought him for just €500k, he could still be seen as a great transfer. A LOAN would also be alright. With Michy Batshuayi we already have a replacement at the club, so letting Matanovic go wouldn’t really hurt and it would probably be the best solution for everyone involved. 

THE LOANEES

We can make this quite short: Hrvoje Smolcic, Aurelio Buta, Jessic Ngankam and Nacho Ferri are all not good enough for the Eintracht Frankfurt squad anymore. With all due respect to their footballing abilities, we should SELL all of them.

Who should Eintracht Frankfurt keep, loan, or sell?

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