Huge Ekitike – Reborn In Frankfurt

Hugo Ekitike - an exciting young star, who blasted himself into the football stratosphere as a teenager at Reims. However, after moving to PSG, Ekitike’s career began to stall, being forced to sit on the bench behind the big names of Kylian Mbappe and Neymar Jr. The 22-year-old averaged a goal every 351 minutes - scoring just four times for the French giants as Ekitike played 1,404 minutes over his two-year period at the club.

In the present day, the Frenchman is now back to his best, moving to Germany and Eintracht Frankfurt where the forward has rejuvenated his career. Moving for a reported €16.50m the pressure and spotlight had been relatively turned off of Ekitike, but after scoring four goals in his first Bundesliga campaign, the Frenchman has quickly become one of the German’s league’s top scorers as Europe’s elite circle for the signature of the 22-year-old.

Frankfurt’s Form

The German Bundesliga is a league filled with often young talents coming through the ranks, mixed with native veterans and some of the world’s best that situate themselves within the country's top teams. Bayern Munich, Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund, and RB Leipzig, are Germany’s three typical top teams that often decide the landscape of the league and who reign’s highest in the Bundesliga. However, 2024/25 has been one of surprises and one of the underdogs - being perfect as ever at the top, Bayern leads the league, while Leverkusen plays catch-up in second place, but for Dortmund, it is a different story, slipping out of the European places and sitting in 10th place.

But for Frankfurt, one team’s struggles is another team’s gain as the Eagles currently occupy fourth place as they challenge to feature in next year’s UEFA Champions League. Following 7th and 6th placed finishes, Frankfurt have been on a steady rise in the Bundesliga table, alongside gradually building a talented squad that can compete. Captained by the safe hands of Kevin Trapp in goal and controlled by Mario Götze in midfield, Dino Toppmöller’s side utilise experience in their spine. Partnered by the energetic youth of players like Nnamdi Collins, Hugo Larsson, Can Uzun, and Jean Bahoya. Finally, at the top of the tree, after the form of Ekitike, Frankfurt decided to hand the striker a partner-in-crime, signing Elye Wahi from Marseille. Despite not yet scoring his first goal for the club, the forward has already scored three goals this season in Ligue 1. With the third most goals scored in the Bundesliga (51), the Eagles, alongside Mainz 05, have been the surprise outfit in Germany’s topflight. Nonetheless, with just nine games left to play, Toppmöller’s team sit just one point within the Champions League spots - losing three of their last five, Frankfurt need to regain their form if they are dreaming of playing on Tuesday and Wednesday nights.

Hugo Ekitike has averaged 0.96 xG+xA p90 in the Bundesliga this season (penalties excluded), putting him in the top 1% of strikers across Europe’s top five leagues.

Elite underlying numbers… 👁️ pic.twitter.com/peVv0gj1WO

— Statman Dave (@StatmanDave) March 19, 2025

Ekitike ‘The Complete Striker’

He can play on the left wing, as a secondary striker, but for Ekitike, the primary role is playing as a nine. Standing at an impressive 6’3”, the former Reims and PSG man has everything that you would want in a striker - pace, composure, hold-up, dribbling, and huge threat on counter-attacks. The 22-year-old has scored 13 league goals this season, making 24 appearances in the Bundesliga, alongside scoring three goals in 10 UEFA Europa League appearances. These goals see Ekitike as the seventh top scorer within Germany, and compared to his league counterparts, the Frankfurt-man is fantastic, sitting above 88% of other forwards for shot attempts, chances created, and goals. Finally, per 90, Toppmöller’s top-scorer once again sits as one of the Bundesliga’s top talents, outperforming 95% of players for goals scored (0.65), non-penalty xG (0.61), shots taken (3.15), shots on target (1.42), and dribbles (4.01). With goals, stats, and attributes all set in favour of the Frenchman, at just 22 years of age, Ekitike has all of the potential to become one of Europe’s best strikers and a Frankfurt great if they can retain his services.

Destined For The Premier League

Having joined for a suspected fee of €16.50m, an emphatic and quick profit could be tempting for Frankfurt. The possibility of a touted fee of around €40-50m that could be reinvested and used to upgrade several positions or to sign numerous young talents. Playing for a club like Frankfurt, Ekitike himself will know that he won't spend the rest of his career playing for the Eagles and that he is destined for stardom. However, the question is who the Frenchman will be playing for and when he will depart the Bundesliga. Due to his great height and quickest, the 22-year-old is moulded perfectly for the Premier League, a pacy goalscorer who can hold up the ball for build-up or lead a transitioning counter-attack, Ekitike is an English manager’s dream. When looking towards the Premier League, there is a lack of quality strikers - other than the imperious Erling Haaland.

🇫🇷🔴 Hugo Ekitiké (Frankfurt, 22)
🇸🇪🔵 Alexander Isak (Newcastle, 25)

Compare players 👉 https://t.co/McR5zrPkTO https://t.co/td95ZpQH0v pic.twitter.com/BqlRFFl2VK

— DataMB (@DataMB_) February 27, 2025

League-leaders Liverpool, while phenomenally transitioning from Jurgen Klopp to Arne Slot and Mohamed Salah’s incredible form, the Reds remain without a poacher. Luis Diaz, Cody Gakpo, and Diogo Jota have all had their spells leading the line, while Darwin Nunez’s confidence seems to continue to spiral. Ekitike could be the perfect solution at Anfield, turning Liverpool into a national and international powerhouse after adding the final piece to the puzzle. On the other hand, Arsenal have been crying out for a goal-scorer for several years after the sale of Pierre Emrick Aubameyang. Kai Havertz has shown moments of brilliance, but now two years after joining the club, it feels that the German was not the answer to the London club’s striker issues and the Gunners do not yet know the correct role for Havertz. To add to this, the 2024/25 season has been full of injuries for Arsenal - Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus, Gabriel Martinelli, and Havertz all spending large spells on the sidelines, with Mikel Merino having to fill in as a nine. Due to this, Frankfurt’s top goalscorer could be the perfect option for the North London club, offering a cheaper alternative to Alexander Isak and guaranteeing goals as Ekitike would look to quickly transition to life in the Premier League similarly to former teammate Omar Marmoush. Whether his next move is to the Premier League or not, there is bound to an adunbance of interest in the French talent Hugo Ekitike this summer as he looks to continue his flourishing young career.