A whirlwind few years has resulted in the Frenchman – who bagged a hat-trick against England under-21s last night – playing for four clubs since 2021. A loan spell at Frankfurt was made permanent last summer but he could already be on the move again.
Newcastle fans will remember Ekitike from multiple transfer sagas in 2022. In the early days of the Saudi-backed era, the Magpies were snubbed in January, a decision Toon chiefs accepted given the precarious league position and his recent burst on the scene.
A deal was struck with Ligue 1 outfit Reims but Ekitike snubbed Newcastle’s interest. Despite staying up convincingly, he rejected the Magpies for a second time to join Paris Saint-Germain.
Many in black-and-white circles felt as though Ekitike used Newcastle to leverage a deal with the Parisian giants. The switch ultimately failed as the prospect failed to dislodge Lionel Messi, Neymar or Kylian Mbappe from the starting line-up.
Luis Enrique was soon appointed as manager but failed to see eye-to-eye with Ekitike. A move to Germany has proven fruitful, with the now 22-year-old scoring 19 goals this season to get his career back on track.
Newcastle are one of several Premier League clubs linked with a possible move for the striker. Alexander Isak remains the No.1 choice at St James’ Park but questions persist over Callum Wilson’s long-term future.
A staggering £70million price tag has been mooted – a figure Toon chiefs would unlikely pay for a backup. Posting on social media, Italian sports journalist Fabrizio Romano claimed Ekitike is set to move clubs again.
“Hugo Ekitike, expected to leave Eintracht Frankfurt in the summer after the excellent season he’s having,” he wrote. “Premier League clubs already started calling for the French striker ahead of the summer transfer window.
https://x.com/FabrizioRomano/status/1903373858037535056?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1903373858037535056%7Ctwgr%5E6c6649b4d34f8715f3acc8549b56394500773817%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.newcastleworld.com%2Fsport%2Ffootball%2Fnewcastle-united%2Fexpected-to-leave-fabrizio-romano-drops-bombshell-newcastle-united-transfer-update-5046352
Hugo Ektike opened up about choosing PSG over Newcastle United last month
Ektike recently spoke to French media about his PSG nightmare. A debate has raged on Tyneside about whether Newcastle should welcome the forward to St James’ Park given his previous rejection.
“I was arriving in Messi and Neymar’s last year,” Ekitike told L’Equipe. “Go and get them out? You can’t. They have to play, they’re the best players in the world.
“You’re behind, you’re trying to save time. Two minutes, 15 minutes, two matches on the bench then 60 minutes…there’s no lying in football. Only continuity makes you a player who can count.
“I’m never going to say that I did everything well. I could have done better – that’s the truth – but they (PSG) didn’t help me do better. They didn’t give me confidence. Even during training, even through discussions, they never really took the time to talk to me to be able to help me. I found myself in a situation where I was forced to get by.
“Even in a match, I had to think about how I moved so as not to hinder any player so that the team could function. All that, mixed with a confidence that wasn’t at its maximum, with a different football… That’s a lot of information that meant it didn’t work, but I learned a lot.”
