Club Wait For Clarity Before Decision On Keeping Nottingham Forest Star
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Eintracht Frankfurt’s decision over whether to sign Nottingham Forest’s Arnaud Kalimuendo on a permanent basis has been put on ice until clarity on both sides’ situations emerges.
Kalimuendo gained prominence amongst Europe’s elites after a 17-goal campaign in Ligue 1 last season, which placed him third on the top scorers chart behind Ousmane Dembele and Mason Greenwood.
A graduate of the Paris Saint-Germain academy, Kalimuendo moved to Rennes in 2022 for a fee of around €25m.
Leeds United, who were outbid by Rennes for the striker in 2022, were turned down by Kalimuendo last summer.
Newcastle United, like Leeds, held an interest in Kalimuendo from his PSG days, and were said to have considered him last summer, with Callum Wilson and Alexander Isak departing.
Kalimuendo had further interest, with the likes of Tottenham Hotspur, Brentford and Roma credited with serious interest in bringing in him to bolster their attack.
It was Nottingham Forest that ultimately won the race for his signature, putting in a bid of €30m to convince Rennes to sell.
Kalimuendo hardly walked into a settled environment at Forest, with the striker having to make constant adjustments, as manager after manager was replaced at the City Ground.
Nuno Espirito Santo, Ange Postecoglou and Sean Dyche were all at the helm during the first half of the season, while Dyche has since been replaced by Vitor Pereira.
Kalimuendo was handed only a total of 88 minutes in the Premier League, while he managed two goals in four appearances in the Europa League.
Nottingham Forest, in the midst of a relegation battle, felt it was in their best interests to loan out Kalimuendo to Eintracht Frankfurt, with the German club negotiating an option to buy in the deal.
Kalimuendo has had more joy in Germany, and has three goals and an assist in the Bundesliga, having already clocked up more than 500 minutes.
Despite this relative success Eintracht Frankfurt are delaying their decision to sign him on a permanent basis, according to the German daily Bild.
While Eintracht Frankfurt are happy with Kalimuendo, participation in next season’s Champions League will play a large role in their decision to trigger the €27m option.
Kalimuendo and Eintracht Frankfurt have already negotiated a potential contract until 2031 with a base salary of around €58,000.
The Tricky Trees survival in, or relegation from, the Premier League might also play a role, opening up a window to renegotiate the fee.
Kalimuendo, incidentally, is also playing under a third manager at Eintracht Frankfurt, after Dino Toppmoller and interim boss Dennis Schmitt in January, and former Liverpool man Albert Riera now.
Eintracht Frankfurt are currently eighth in the Bundesliga, twelve points behind fourth-placed Stuttgart and ten behind RB Leipzig, who are fifth.
The Bundesliga itself is presently second in UEFA’s coefficient rankings, a position which will give it five qualifying spots, but a lot can change depending upon the German clubs performances in Europe.
Eintracht Frankfurt had Omar Marmoush and Hugo Ekitike to fire them up the league with their goals last season, and Kalimuendo will hope he can do the same for them this campaign.
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