How Hugo Ekitike became latest young forward to flourish at Eintracht Frankfurt

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While Hugo Ekitike's hat-trick for France against England's Under-21s in March will have boosted his profile further, plenty of Premier League suitors were already admiring the Eintracht Frankfurt forward.

Ekitike, 22, is enjoying a stellar season, heading into a Europa League quarter-final against Tottenham Hotspur having grabbed 19 goals and eight assists in 40 appearances.

His form has meant that, despite losing top scorer Omar Marmoush to Manchester City in January, Eintracht arrive in London third in the Bundesliga and chasing Champions League football for next season on two fronts.

"Ekitike has had a wonderful season," Christopher Michel, football reporter at the Frankfurter Rundschau, tells BBC Sport.

"His technique is one of the best in Europe and his foot is like glue for the ball. It is incredible how he dribbles, and he doesn't care if the ball is on his left or his right foot – he can shoot with both, and this is a quality you need as a top striker."

Consistent goalscorers are football's rarest commodity and Ekitike will not be short of summer suitors. He may yet come to England – having almost done so in 2022.

The forward was wanted then by Newcastle United, who had just been taken over by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund.

Newcastle first attempted to sign him that January, but he decided to see out the season in France with Stade Reims. They returned that summer and reportedly agreed a fee – but the player chose French champions Paris St-Germain.

Ekitike headed to Paris on a loan-first buy-later deal and counted Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi among his team-mates. He won Ligue 1 in his first season, appearing in 25 of 38 league games.

However, despite both Messi and Neymar departing that summer, Ekitike found himself on the periphery. He was left out of PSG's Champions League squad for 2023-24 and played just nine minutes in the league up until the new year.

He subsequently moved to Frankfurt on 1 February 2024, before his loan was made permanent in April.

Ekitike's breakthrough came at hometown club Reims. He signed a first professional contract as a 17-year-old in July 2020 and, before becoming a first-team regular, spent the 2021 season on loan at Danish Superliga side Vejle.

Jacob Schoop, Vejle's captain at the time, smiles when recalling Ekitike's stint in Denmark.

"He was always in a good mood, and he liked to have some fun in the dressing room," Schoop tells BBC Sport. "If there was a song on the speaker he would be dancing. That's not really the Danish culture – most of us were more reserved!

"He was a happy boy, and even though he didn't play as much in the beginning, he trained well and had a really good attitude.

"The joy he had for playing was amazing to see. Even during a tough session, he'd still be laughing, finding fun in beating players one-v-one, or putting in that little bit extra."

According to Schoop, Ekitike's pace and ability with the ball were clear immediately, but he was "lacking the physique at the beginning". Then, after the mid-season break, he was 5% better at everything.

"There was a game against Sonderjyske that if we won, we avoided relegation. Hugo was unbelievable in that game," he says. "That's the sign of a big game player – to step up and find that bit extra."

Ekitike finished with three goals and one assist for Vejle in 2021, but "arrived as a boy and left a man".

The following season, Ekitike scored 10 for Reims in Ligue 1.

At least until recently, there have been doubts as to whether Ekitike is ready to operate as a lone forward for one of Europe's elite clubs.

Earlier this season, he thrived as part of a more traditional front two alongside Marmoush – the man Ekitike previously described as his "partner in crime" – with Eintracht coach Dino Toppmoller identifying this was how the striker succeeded in his Reims days.

However, Ekitike is rapidly proving the doubters wrong.

"Since Marmoush left, Toppmoller has found a system with Mario Gotze as playmaker behind him," Michel explains.

"Ekitike has adapted, developed and now plays as a great lone striker. He is making quick steps. To start with, he only had a good game when he scored or got an assist, but now his all-round play means he can still have a good game even if he doesn't do that."

Should, as is widely expected, Ekitike depart Eintracht this summer, it will be for a handsome profit on the 16.5m euros it took to secure his permanent services 12 months back.

While ideally any club would love to retain their top talents, developing players and receiving significant returns on their investment through sales to what sporting director Markus Krosche has previously termed "end clubs" is all part of Eintracht's master plan.

"There is no alternative," Michel explains. "There are 10 or 12 clubs in Europe who, if they want a player, Frankfurt has no choice but to sell. We saw it in winter when Manchester City took Marmoush. The same thing now is happening with Ekitike.

"For the fans it is really frustrating and hard emotionally knowing they will lose their best player every year but it is the model. The club tell players that if they got an offer bigger than Frankfurt, they will be allowed to go. Krosche has to fulfil that promise if a big team is knocking."

In recent years, Krosche has been good to his word, with Randal Kolo Muani- sold to PSG in September 2023 for an initial fee of 75m euros (£64.5m) – Marmoush and Luka Jovic – sold to Real Madrid in 2019 for a fee reported to exceed 60m euros (£51.6m) – all sold for vast profit.

"Krosche has huge trust," says Michel. "He finds a lot of great talents in Europe and will find the next Ekitike for Eintracht Frankfurt."

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