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FootballIt’s the “Kolo Muani Mania” in the Bundesliga
Still a scorer on Saturday against Bayern, Randal Kolo Muani continues to be decisive with Frankfurt. According to his coach, the World Cup transformed him.
Randal Kolo Muani celebrates his goal against Freiburg on January 25.
AFP
Unfortunate hero of the World Cup final, Randal Kolo Muani would have had every right to return to the field with a wave in his soul. No one knows if his shot at the near post, kicked back by Emiliano Martinez at the last minute of added time, haunts the nights of the Eintracht Frankfurt striker. But if so, the Frenchman has turned the trauma into positive energy. Passer then double scorer since the resumption, the former Nantes player now displays the rather maddening statistic of 9 goals and 12 assists in 25 matches this season (6 and 11 in the Bundesliga).
On Saturday, Randal Kolo Muani went to snatch the draw at the Allianz Arena after a one-two from 40 meters with the Japanese Kamada, leaving no chance for Yann Sommer. An action that once again displayed its incredible ability to double acceleration. “His coordination is brutal, got carried away Christian Streich, the historic coach of SC Freiburg. He is able to sprint to the touchline, save a ball and then leave his defender behind when he has changed direction. It is not logical. His running is so natural.”
Unable to score
And the coach of “Sport-Club” to describe the distress in which Kolo Muani is currently plunging the defenses of the Bundesliga. “If you mark him too close, he leans, turns on a touch. If you give him too much space, he picks up speed and provokes. And when you take him to the touchline, you must not leave him more than ten centimeters. A mouse hole is enough for him to pass the ball.
We would like to define the confidence that we would not do it any other way. But precisely, the World Cup in Qatar – despite its cruel epilogue – seems to have intimately transformed the one that was the last minute surprise of Didier Deschamps. “The World Cup has changed his personality, confides his coach Oliver Glasner to the Kicker. He gained confidence and self-knowledge. He has developed a form of presence. Even in training, I hear it more during exercises. He’s in full swing.”
What to imagine that, only eight months after his arrival in Hesse, Randal Kolo Muani would already be ready to join a European giant? “If a club arrives tomorrow and offers 100 million euros for Randal, we will take them, replies Glasner. To collect such a sum, it would be necessary to win two Champions Leagues. A prospect that now seems much more realistic for the French striker than for Eintracht Frankfurt.
