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Liverpool have been delighted by the impact Hugo Ekitike has made since joining the club in the summer , but the deal has had a knock-on effect elsewhere. The Reds agreed to pay Eintracht Frankfurt a total of £79million for Ektike during a busy summer transfer window which saw them splash out over £450m. Ekitike contributed 26 goals and 14 assists in 64 appearances for Frankfurt to attract transfer attention from the Premier League . Liverpool managed to get the 23-year-old Frenchman ahead of Newcastle and he has already begun paying back the £69m (€80m) plus £10m (€12.5m) in add-ons he cost them. So far he has six goals and one assist in 15 games for Liverpool, where he has outshone fellow new arrival Alexander Isak to become Arne Slot ’s preferred striker. But while his new club are happy to have him, Frankfurt have been forced to move on. The German side finished third in the Bundesliga last season, with Ekitike and Omar Marmoush ending the campaign as joint top-scorers in all competitions. While Ekitike was sold to Liverpool in the summer, Marmoush joined Manchester City for £59m in January. The deals represented good business for Frankfurt, but sporting director Timmo Hardung has admitted that their exits, like that of Randal Kolo Muani to Paris Saint-Germain in 2023, has depleted their ranks. “It’s clear that when you say goodbye to players like Kolo Muani or Ekitike, your quality drops,” Hardung told Gazzetta dello Sport . “And you can’t keep them, there’s little to discuss, as ambitious as we remain in our project.” Frankfurt know their place in the food chain and therefore aim to unearth the next top talent to fill the gap. Asked what their response was, Hardung replied: “Simple, look for and train others. There’s a thin thread that links player trading and scouting. “If you manage to maintain a balance and overcome the obvious difficulties at the beginning of each cycle, you can then replicate the results on the pitch.” Frankfurt are currently eighth in the Bundesliga, while they have managed just one win from their four Champions League games so far. But no matter how the campaign goes, the club will continue its current approach to player recruitment. “It’s a team effort, and there’s no secret recipe,” Hardung added. “The first step is to identify talent around the world and bring them to Frankfurt under the right conditions. “Then we have to do everything we can to make the player feel comfortable. If he’s young, allow him to make mistakes. And grow, including through specific and, above all, individual training.” Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
