Dhe first two players from the current second row that Oliver Glasner came on against Gladbach (1:1) were 19-year-old Paxten Aaronson and Junior Dina Ebimbe (22). The talents from France and the United States took part in last Saturday’s game from the 55th minute at the behest of their coach. They were followed a good 20 minutes later by Faride Alidou, who is also only 21 years old. All three had one thing in common on the 28th Bundesliga matchday: the Frankfurt team felt a jolt when they took the second row. Aaronson, Dina Ebimbe and Alidou each brought momentum to the long attacking game in their own way. Or to put it another way: The Joker stabbed.
Alidou set up Randal Kolo Muani’s equalizer (83rd minute) with a well-placed cross. And Dina Ebimbe could have been the top scorer had he been more callous after Kolo Muani’s post hit. But even so, the special praise from team council member Kevin Trapp was appropriate for all three. “They also gave us back our faith,” said the national goalkeeper happily. Thanks to the offspring.
With pride in his voice, Glasner reported afterwards that a total of four professionals under the age of 22 had been on the pitch. The 21-year-old Ansgar Knauff, who, thanks to his past successes, is a little more part of the Eintracht establishment than his three young colleagues, sent the coach into the race after 17 minutes for the injured Kristijan Jakic. Now Knauff’s competition seems to be catching up on the way up.
Ebimbe has to be mentioned first, who had already shown his skills before his serious syndesmosis ligament injury and is now making his second attempt towards regular consideration. In midfield, the Frenchman acts as a robust duel and strong-willed driver. In eleven first division games with him, Frankfurt had collected 25 points, an average of 2.1. Then Ebimbe was out from the end of January to mid-March. Without him, the Eintracht ensemble’s point average went down to 1.1. “It was not for nothing that he was almost a regular player before he got injured,” says Glasner about his status.
Like Aaronson, Ebimbe played the attacking half position against Gladbach. The loanee from Paris Saint-Germain, who has already played in the sixth position and on the right wing, showed his versatility. “I have the feeling that Junior is back in the juice,” said Trapp. “With his physical nature, he was able to drive a lot again.”
In his third Bundesliga game, Aaronson also played a major role in making the Frankfurt appearance more dynamic and powerful with the fresh forces from the bench. Consequently, the Frankfurters earned more final actions. The young American was “incredibly agile”, judged Trapp. Aaronson wasn’t afraid to do things wrong. Instead, he summoned up all the courage and cheerfully pushed the attacking game with straightforward actions. And just as carefree as he was as an active player on the pitch, Aaronson also talked to the journalists after the work was done.
He spoke frankly about his feelings and experiences with the team. From the support he has received so far in Frankfurt. “I’m happy to have gotten a few minutes, it was a good experience.” Without exaggerating, Aaronson felt he had “played a decent game”. He raved about captain Sebastian Rode and Mario Götze, who would have helped him integrate. Aaronson is also grateful for the support of his teammates Jesper Lindström and Christopher Lenz. “They always took me with them when I didn’t have a car at the beginning. They were my Uber drivers,” he said, grinning.
After the strong performance of the youngsters, the question arises as to why the young wild ones were not allowed to inspire the Eintracht game earlier. Maybe not all at once, but one at a time. The established attacker Rafael Borré, for example – it’s been a long time since he last scored – was a big disappointment, but Glasner still stuck with him. And from his point of view there are good reasons not to rush into one or the other case.
Aaronson, who signed Eintracht for around four million euros, only “played 400 minutes” in US Major League Soccer. Although he is a “great boy” and “highly talented” player, Aaronson first has to get used to the Bundesliga, Glasner pointed out. In this context, the coach emphasized that he doesn’t set up his team according to a player’s age or contractual situation, but only according to performance. “If I think players help the team, then I bring them.”
In fact, Alidou presented himself in competitive games in such a way that he didn’t deserve a second chance. Now his decent performance against Gladbach has to be the yardstick for him. If the talents continue to appear so boldly in a positive sense in the future, there will be no way around them in the long run.