Tottenham Hotspur have expressed interest in signing prolific German international centre-forward Younes Ebnoutalib from Eintracht Frankfurt, according to Sky Sports Deutschland.
Ebnoutalib is the latest star on Frankfurt’s books and could soon follow in the footsteps of other forwards the club developed before making big-money moves, including Luca Jovic, André Silva, Sebastien Haller, Randal Kolo Muani, Omar Marmoush and Hugo Ekitike.
As part of Frankfurt’s renowned recruitment strategy under former director Markus Krösche, Ebnoutalib, who netted 12 goals in the first half of last season, joined the club in January from newly promoted SV Elversberg as a relatively unknown prospect.
After a slow start to life at Deutsche Bank Park, where he played just five games, the 23-year-old has been in prolific form this season, providing ten goal contributions in ten games in all competitions, including seven in seven Bundesliga games.
Overall, he averages a goal or assist every 85 minutes this season, which is a remarkable statistic for a player in his first-ever top-flight season, having played most of his career in lower divisions.
Now, according to Sky Sports Deutschland, several top clubs across Europe have expressed interest in signing Ebnoutalib from Frankfurt.
‘Incredible’ attacker
One of the clubs looking to sign the 6ft 3in centre-forward is Tottenham, as per the report, which claims that the North London club are among the leading contenders for the youngster’s signature.
However, despite Spurs’ interest, a deal will not be easy, with the report adding that Ebnoutalib is contracted with Frankfurt until 2031, and talks over a salary increment have already been initiated for the German forward, who is also of keen interest to Juventus
After ousting Richarlison from the first team, Roberto De Zerbi currently has Dominic Solanke, Omar Marmoush and the versatile Mathys Tel as centre-forward options.
Still, the trio’s output has been underwhelming, with none of them scoring more than one Premier League goal so far. More concerning is their combined record across all competitions, which stands at just four goals.
This has increased the need for a prolific goalscorer, making Ebnoutalib, described as ‘incredible’ by Football Talent Scout-Jacek Kulig, a viable option for De Zerbi. The two-cap Germany international is not only a proven goalscorer but also possesses the physicality, pace and aerial ability to thrive in the Premier League.
With Frankfurt keen on retaining him, Tottenham will need to submit a concrete offer well above his £15m Transfermarkt valuation to test their resolve.
