Eintracht Frankfurt are considering a move for Southampton defender Armel Bella-Kotchap, but a deal is ‘very difficult’ for them to put together at this point.
That’s according to Sport 1, who back up a report from BILD yesterday that the German side are interested in the 21-year-old.
That report stated that Frankfurt, who need a replacement for Evan N’Dicka this summer, were ‘hot’ for Bella-Kotchap, who is likely to want to leave Southampton.
Sport 1 follow that up today and say that he is definitely on the Hessian’s list of transfer targets, and they are ‘interested’ in a potential dal.
At the moment he is just one of ‘several candidates’ they are looking at as they, like many in Germany, have been impressed by his rapid rise this season.
They, though, explain that the overall package for Bella-Kotchap is difficult for Eintracht Frankfurt to put together at this moment in time. That’s because his current value of €20m plus his annual salary of €2.5m at Southampton is far above what the Germans can offer.
The defender also doesn’t have a release clause in his current contract, even though Southampton are relegated, meaning that he could cost significantly more than his €20m valuation.
Sports director Markus Krösche does want to strengthen the side’s defence this summer, though, and Bella-Kotchap is on the list of options being looked at.
