Jesper Lindstrøm: Meet Frankfurt’s key supporting piece wanted by Arsenal & Co.

Is interested in EPL move 

Eintracht Frankfurt are currently in the race for a top-four finish in the Bundesliga. A race that could be decisive in the club’s attempts to keep key players. The contracts of Evan Ndicka and Daichi Kamada will end next summer. Star striker Randal Kolo Muani has been linked with several top clubs already. The next candidate for a transfer is Danish winger Jesper Lindstrøm. According to a report by German outlet Sport1, Lindstrøm would be open to leaving the club and heading to the Premier League. 

“I can’t say if I am leaving this summer, next year, or in ten years,” Lindstrøm recently said. “I told my agent that he oversees such things. “I want to concentrate on my game.” According to the report, Lindstrøm could be interested in leaving Frankfurt as early as next summer. 

Frankfurt signed Lindstrøm for €7 million from Brøndby IF in the summer of 2021. Since his arrival in Frankfurt, the Danish winger has increased his market value from €7m to €28m. The 22-year-old is now the fourth most valuable player in Frankfurt’s squad and the Danish national team. Lindstrøm is under contract until 2026 and has no exit clause. Frankfurt’s sporting director Markus Krösche, therefore, has no need to sell the winger next summer. Sport1 believes Eintracht would want at least €30-35m for the winger. A fee in that category would make him the third most expensive departure in history behind Luka Jović and Sébastien Haller. 

Eintracht Frankfurt: Lindstrøm is a supporting piece 

Based on the current season, Lindstrøm is certainly worth the money. Capable of playing on the wing and as an attacking midfielder, Lindstrøm has scored nine goals and four assists in 27 games this season. The Dane was involved in 28% of Frankfurt’s goals this season and, by the time of writing, ranked tenth in the Bundesliga with 11 scorer points, just behind teammate Kamada (12). In fact, with 23 goals scored, Lindstrøm, with Kolo Muani and Kamada, forms the third most successful attacking trio, ranked just behind Bayern Munich’s Jamal Musiala, Serge Gnabry, and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting (26 goals).

While it is obvious that the Dane is a crucial player for Frankfurt, Lindstrøm’s underlying stats are equally impressive. Great in one-v-one situations, Lindstrøm—according to Wyscout—ranks in the top 20 of all Bundesliga players with 5.74 dribbles per 90 minutes. Of those dribbles, 43.5% were successful. When comparing Lindstrøm to Frankfurt’s other star players, only Kolo Muani has more dribbles per 90 minutes (6.45) than the Danish forward. 

In fact, when put next to one another, you can tell why Lindstrøm has been effective when he is paired with Kolo Muani and Kamada. While Kamada is the classical playmaker and Kolo Muani the finisher, Lindstrøm is more of a complimentary piece. Hardworking, with an ability to take on players one-v-one, the Dane also leads the trio with 63.68% won defensive duels and 6.67 defensive actions per 90 minutes. In other words, the 22-year-old is often in charge of the dirty work in transition. 

Lindstrøm is a Liverpool fan – Arsenal are interested 

Supporting piece or not, Lindstrøm is crucial when it comes to making Frankfurt’s attack work. It is, therefore, no surprise that Arsenal are now interested in the forward. Another potential destination is Brentford. Lindstrøm, in the meantime, is a long-time fan of Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool. “I’ve always said that I’m a Liverpool fan, so it could be really cool to play for Liverpool at some point,” Lindstrøm said in an interview on TV 2 program ‘Førstevælger’ (via The Liverpool Echo).

With the Reds set to miss out on European football, Liverpool could face a significant rebuild next summer. In theory, manager Klopp loves players like Lindstrøm, who can occupy several attacking positions in a front-three or double-ten behind a natural no. 9 like in Frankfurt. 

Yet it appears that both Brentford and Arsenal are the most interested clubs. Brentford, under data-driven manager Thomas Frank, have increasingly targeted the Bundesliga for new signings, recently adding Freiburg’s Kevin Schade. Frankfurt, however, would have to miss the Champions League, and Arsenal would need to pursue other targets for Brentford to have a chance to sign Lindstrøm. In fact, Arsenal might be a perfect destination for the Dane. Mikel Arteta likes to play with a front-three and will need to add depth pieces as the Gunners are set to return to the Champions League.

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