They have shown patience and it is now beginning to pay off.

If the plans of Eintracht Frankfurt and Randal Kolo Muani had gone according to plan, both sides would have started working together in July 2021.

The club saw the Frenchman as the right alternative at the time to add a dash of verve to the diversity of his team up front, and for the professional, who had previously demonstrated his talent in Ligue 1, it was clear that it was him would move to the Bundesliga.

Marc Heinrich

sports editor.

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Only FC Nantes, whose decision-makers were aware that they had trained Kolo Muani to be an extremely goal-oriented attacker, did not initially participate.

Those responsible for the "canaries" demanded ten million euros as transfer compensation, which Eintracht could and wanted to pay a maximum of half - shaken by the Corona crisis - so that the deal only came about on the second attempt and then even free of charge.

“Proud to play for Eintracht”

Because: Postponed was not lifted, and during the winter break Kolo Muani shook his head negatively at all attempts to sell him elsewhere (to SC Freiburg or AC Milan), because he felt obliged to his word that he had given the Frankfurt talent Discoverer Ben Manga had given: "I'm proud to play for Eintracht," he repeated in the summer at his performance on the Main, when the month-long stalemate had come to an official end in his sense and the 23-year-old was able to confidently announce the coach Wanting to "prove" Oliver Glasner that the good reputation that preceded him is no coincidence.

Twelve competitive games have been played since then, and the fact that Eintracht are driven by ambitious intentions at the start of their XXL program with 13 games until the start of the World Cup in mid-November has something to do with Kolo Muani.

In the 2-0 win over Union Berlin, he paved the way to success as the preparer for the early opening goal by Mario Götze with a 50-meter solo, this Tuesday (9 p.m. in the FAZ live ticker for the Champions League and on Amazon Prime). it in the Champions League against Tottenham Hotspur.

Praise from Kevin Trapp

Kolo Muani is characterized by an unselfishness that stands out as unusual in the ranks of the often more egotistical experts in the penalty area: he sees himself primarily as a team player who puts himself at the service of the team and serves the people next to him when he realizes that they are more from the situation than him.

So far he has five assists while scoring twice himself.

Due to his willingness to run, his ability to assert himself in the air and on the ground and his sensitive handling of the ball, his daredevilry, especially in combination with the no less industrious Götze, Daichi Kamada or Jesper Lindström, makes it difficult for defenders to calculate or slow down.

"He keeps coming back to balls that seem already lost," praised keeper Kevin Trapp for the troublemaker's perseverance in the opposing half.

The fact that he had to leave the field prematurely on Saturday with yellow-red because he used his body too uncontrollably in two situations only slightly diminished the positive overall impression up to that point.

Kolo Muani was born in Bondy, a district of Paris where world star Kylian Mbappé grew up.

Accordingly, comparisons between them are still frequently attempted.

Kolo Muani thinks this is misleading.

"I don't quite understand why people say that.

I was born in Bondy Hospital but never lived there.

I grew up in Villepinte, my parents still live there.”

In mid-September, Kolo Muani was appointed to the Equipe Tricolore and alongside Mbappé for the first time in recognition of his achievements in the Eintracht jersey.

"The feeling is overwhelming, it's more than a dream." The Frenchman's career began in a comparatively unconventional way, without a stay at one of the exquisite French youth academies.

In 2015 he started at FC Nantes in the U19s and at the age of 20 had to assert himself in the third division at US Boulogne.

"You can call it an advantage that I came into professional football late," he said, as it gave him enough time to develop "on a mental and football level" away from the hustle and bustle.

Eintracht now benefits from the fact that he acquired outstanding skills in the process.

The Schlacks with the mischievous smile has taken the heart of the Frankfurt audience by storm, which in the recent past has cheered for some truly exceptional attackers in the form of Sébastien Haller, Ante Rebic, Luka Jovic and André Silva.