Randal Kolo Muani is on everyone’s lips. The Eintracht striker’s 19 competitive goals in 37 games and twelve assists this season speak for themselves: the 24-year-old French international, who scored both goals in the 2-0 home win over Union Berlin in the DFB Cup, is probably the best at the moment Attackers in Germany. It’s no wonder that Europe’s top clubs have taken notice of league newcomer Kolo Muani, who has taken off like a meteor.
Now Bayern, with their new coach Thomas Tuchel, are also to deal with a transfer of the aggressive exceptional talent. Despite his steep career, he does not take off, as his shared goal celebration with a ball boy after the 2-0 win against Berlin in the World Cup Arena proved. “I saw that the boy was happy – just as extremely happy as I was myself,” said Kolo Muani.
His scoring and assists in the 5-1 win in the first half of the season in a duel with Bayer Leverkusen also gave reason to be enthusiastic. Before the second meeting this Saturday (3.30 p.m. in the FAZ live ticker for the Bundesliga and on Sky) in Leverkusen, Kolo Muani, aware of his own strengths, revealed weaknesses. He believes that Bayer professional Moussa Diaby is “a bit faster”. “Because it’s a bit smaller, it’s easier for it to move around,” said Kolo Muani and grinned. Diaby is a “good friend” of the star striker from Paris.
Conversation between Holzer and Hellmann
Kolo Muani’s Frankfurt teammate Rafael Borré impresses as a frequent runner on the offensive. But the Colombian international isn’t nearly as popular as the Frenchman. That’s because Kolo Muani outstripped him by a wide margin this round. And in the half positions, Borré couldn’t get past Mario Götze and Jesper Lindström, who has more speed than Borré and therefore goes deeper.
The celebrated Europa League hero of the previous season therefore often had to be content with the role of substitute, which is said to have displeased all of his advisors. It wasn’t until the Dane Lindström injured his ankle that Borré was first choice again in mid-March. In the first division matches against Stuttgart (1:1), Union Berlin (0:2) and Bochum he was one of the starting line-ups. Only his third goal of the season he didn’t want to succeed at all – despite excellent opportunities.
But once, like against Bochum, an opponent positioned himself on the goal line and cleared the situation for his team, or Borré only hit the crossbar with his shot. The South American seems to have had bad luck on the way to the goal he longs for. Oliver Glasner still sticks to him out of conviction, because he appreciates Borré’s perseverance and fighting spirit.
“We’re behind Rafael 100 percent,” said the coach two days before the game at Bayer 04. “Anyone who gives as much diligence and passion for the team as Rafael does will always have our full support.” Glasner referred to winning the ball von Borré before the 2-0 win against Union in the cup. As a result, “everything else got rolling,” according to the coach. “The scorer is always celebrated, but it’s mostly a product of team effort.”
Borré is the most annoyed himself “about missed chances or similar situations,” said the football coach, where team players who sacrifice themselves for the big picture are highly regarded. Borré did better recently with the national team: in the friendly against Japan (2-1) he shone with a spectacular overhead kick. In Frankfurt, Borré, who is now losing significantly fewer balls than a few weeks ago, should continue to serve the team from the start, as Glasner recently let it be known that Lindström will not be an issue “in the next two or three weeks”. will be.
For Glasner, Borré is “the best player against the ball” in the group of offensive players. One who also has the appreciation of his fellow players. The Colombian is “very important to us again,” said captain Sebastian Rode. “And if Rafael continues like this, he’ll score again.” From the coming season, Omar Marmoush should be one of the Eintracht goalscorers, the Wolfsburg attacker is about to move to Frankfurt. Eintracht sports director Markus Krösche recently described the 24-year-old as an “interesting player”.
In the meantime, CEO Axel Hellmann and the chairman of the supervisory board, Philip Holzer, met for another discussion on Wednesday. Club President Peter Fischer and Supervisory Board members Stephen Orenstein and Claudio Montanini also took part in the “exchange that took place in a good and constructive atmosphere”, as stated in a press release. “During the almost four-hour conversation, the current issues, in particular the resolution of possible conflicts of interest with regard to raising capital by Eintracht Frankfurt Fußball AG, were discussed in detail.”
All those present “reaffirmed that they stand behind the current company valuation without reservations,” the association’s statement said. With regard to “all other contents of the conversation”, the parties involved agreed not to disclose it. Internals should now no longer reach the public. If that succeeds, it would be a first step in the Frankfurt leadership crisis to close the ranks.
