Selling Hugo Ekitiké To Liverpool Is Part Of Frankfurt’s Business Plan

It is now only a matter of time until Hugo Ekitiké is officially revealed as a new Liverpool FC player. On the weekend, multiple reports in England and Germany indicated that Liverpool had agreed a deal with Eintracht Frankfurt to sign the 23-year-old French striker.

Once completed, Ekitiké will sign a six-year contract with Liverpool. According to a report by Transfermarkt, Frankfurt will receive €95 million ($111 million) for Ekitiké. The fee matches the record transfer fee the Bundesliga club received for selling Randal Kolo Muani to Paris Saint-Germain in 2023.

For Liverpool, Ekitiké becomes the third big signing from the Bundesliga this offseason. Earlier in the summer, Liverpool signed Florian Wirtz in a deal worth €140 million ($163.7 million) and Emmanuel Frimpong in a deal worth €40 million ($46.7 million) from Bayer Leverkusen.

The Premier League giants have also secured Milos Kerkez in a deal worth €46 million ($53.7 million) from league competitors Bournemouth. Altogether, the transfer volume significantly exceeds $450 million this summer.

They are significant sums, but Liverpool can afford it. The Reds have earned considerable money from winning the championship last season and consistently go deep in the Champions League. Additionally, Liverpool has managed to sell older players at a profit.

Indeed, on the outgoing side, Liverpool is likely to generate significant funds by selling Colombian winger Luis Díaz to Frankfurt’s league competitor Bayern Munich. Liverpool has so far resisted selling Díaz, but it is now understood that they would now allow the winger to leave for Bayern for the right price.

Selling Díaz would make sense anyhow. The 28-year-old is coming off a strong season but under Arne Slot, Liverpool is obviously following a strategy of making the squad younger. Plus, Ekitiké, although on paper a no.9, can play all attacking positions up front. The same can be said for Wirtz, and even Frimpong could help out in the attack.

In fact, the addition of Ekitiké appears to be a lesson learned from PSG’s Champions League victory. Like many other top clubs, Liverpool wants to become younger and more dynamic in the attack. Adding players under 24, like Wirtz and Ekitiké, who can play multiple roles in the forward line, therefore, makes sense.

It is a lesson that has already arrived in Germany. Although Frankfurt will lose a crucial player in Ekitiké, Die Eintracht boss Markus Krösche took a couple of key lessons from selling Kolo Muani on deadline day in the summer of 2023.

First, ensure that you are selling your price asset early in the window. Second, have potential replacements already in the squad. Frankfurt not only signed from Mainz this summer but already added Elye Wahi from Marseille and Michy Batshuayi from Galatasaray in January.

On top of that, there are several other potential breakout stars in Frankfurt’s squad already. One player to watch is playmaker Can Uzun, who, despite being a different player, could take on some of the production that will now be missing with Ekitiké’s departure from the club.

Indeed, Frankfurt has also taken some important lessons from what PSG achieved in the Champions League last season. The Bundesliga club will utilize the Ekitiké funds to diversify its attack and midfield. The club will also continue to invest in young players to foster growth, and while still sell its top players for premium prices.

With that in mind, selling Ekitiké, like it was the case for Omar Marmoush and Kolo Muani, will feel like a step back. But the reality is that Frankfurt has grown after every single one of those deals. In fact, the next Ekitiké is probably already playing for the club, and his successor might be as well.