When the introduction round with Jerome Onguene was over on Friday, the new Eintracht player held his number four jersey in his hands for the photographers.

Not because the Spanish world champion Sergio Ramos is his "big idol".

First and foremost, the four stands for the classic central defender, said the 24-year-old Onguene with conviction.

A physical defender who is physically present and strong in tackles.

One like Onguene.

"He's definitely a warrior," said Frankfurt's sporting director Markus Krösche about the "very good header" approach.

Not to forget: Onguene noted that he was also “good” with the ball.

George Daniels

Editor in the sports department

  • Follow I follow

The defender, who has French and Cameroonian nationality, came to Frankfurt from Salzburg.

During his five years of service at RB - in 2021 he was loaned to Genoa for half a year - he diligently collected awards: five championship titles and four cup successes.

Only his deployment times could not keep up with this track record.

He has only played 187 minutes so far in 2022 – seven for Salzburg in March, the rest for Cameroon's national team in January in two 90-minute games.

Different on the pitch than private

The ten-time national player brought malaria back from the Africa Cup of Nations, which resulted in a one-week hospital stay.

After that, in consultation with the doctors, he had to "recover for a week or two", "it dragged on," reported Onguene.

"My malaria took an unfortunate course because important and big games were coming up at that time." Today, however, he was "completely fit and recovered".

The first days of training in Frankfurt showed him that the change is hardly worth mentioning.

He sees "no big difference to the intensity in Salzburg," said Onguene.

There he played in the Champions League, in the Europa League he met his new employer a few years ago and was impressed by the "crazy" atmosphere in the Waldstadion.

On the pitch, Onguene is very different than in his private life, much livelier and impulsive.

He likes to "fight and scream".

He will also need assertiveness and assertiveness in order to be able to achieve his goals at Eintracht – “I want to take a big step here” – in the next five years (his contract runs until mid-2027).

"Frankfurt have a strong defense, you saw that in the Europa League season.

The defense played its part in the success,” said Onguene, who is classified in the versatility category.

"I've already played a back four and a back three, I feel comfortable in both systems.

It doesn't matter to me whether I play centrally or on the side." In Salzburg he came to the train "in the center of the back three".

Onguene, who was trained at FC Sochaux and who had gone through all the youth national teams in France from the U16 to the U20, is now making his second attempt in Germany.

In January 2017, as a 19-year-old, he joined VfB Stuttgart, but did not play with the professionals.

“The Jerome of Stuttgart can no longer be compared to the Jerome of today.

I've learned to grow up over the past few years," he said.