Eintracht Frankfurt have granted Ellyes Skhiri permission to negotiate a transfer away from the club. The Tunisia international has been omitted from the squad travelling to Grassau for pre-season training as he holds discussions with another team.
The 31-year-old midfielder is widely reported to be in talks over a return to Köln, where he spent four successful seasons before joining Frankfurt on a free transfer in 2023. His current contract at the Deutsche Bank Park expires at the end of the upcoming campaign, meaning the club risk losing him for nothing next summer if they do not sanction a move now.
Attackers left behind
Frankfurt also left three strikers behind as the squad departed for Bavaria. Michy Batshuayi, Noel Futkeu and Jessic Ngankam were all excluded from the travelling party.
Batshuayi managed just ten appearances across all competitions last season. Futkeu, who topped the scoring charts in the 2. Bundesliga with Greuther Fürth, recently saw Frankfurt exercise their option to bring him back from the promoted side, while Ngankam spent the second half of the previous campaign on loan at Austrian outfit Wolfsberger AC following his departure from Hertha Berlin.
Ebimbe future remains uncertain
In contrast to those left at home, Junior Dina Ebimbe has joined the training camp despite recently being close to a move to Schalke 04. The newly-promoted Bundesliga 2 side retain an interest in the French midfielder, but manager Adi Hütter is understood to favour keeping him at the club.
Frankfurt are reportedly seeking to extend Ebimbe’s contract to secure his long-term future, although negotiations appear ongoing. Left-back Niels Nkounkou has also linked up with the squad in Grassau.
Skhiri’s potential departure would mark the end of a disappointing spell in Frankfurt for the former Köln captain, who struggled to replicate his previous form after receiving the armband for Tunisia at last winter’s World Cup.