Frankfurt got their man by first sorting out someone else’s paperwork. Atubolu extended his SC Freiburg contract this week, a technicality that cleared the biggest obstacle to a loan across the Bundesliga.
Players with only one year left on their deal cannot be loaned out under standard rules. Atubolu’s contract had been due to expire in 2027, and until Wednesday that quirk had blocked the model both clubs wanted. The extension freed him to move.
Freiburg had initially sought around €20m, with the asking price since dropping to about €15m as Frankfurt could not finance an outright transfer. The loan agreement carries a mandatory purchase clause reported at €13m by Sky Germany’s Florian Plettenberg.
Freiburg head coach Julian Schuster acknowledged the direction of travel this week.
Read also: Williams sisters back in a Grand Slam doubles draw for the first time since 2022
“Frankfurt are a very, very big club in Germany. So that can be a possibility.”
Brentford laid bare a keeper problem
The urgency at Frankfurt is not hard to trace. Their pre-season closed with a 7-0 friendly defeat by Brentford, a result that laid bare the club’s goalkeeping shortfall and prompted an immediate search.
Kauã Santos, the young Brazilian expected to inherit the shirt long-term, has been dogged by injuries and costly errors, and Michael Zetterer, signed from Werder Bremen last summer, never nailed down the number one spot either. Neither convinced against Brentford.
Atubolu offers a different profile. The Freiburg academy product started all 34 Bundesliga matches in 2025/26 and helped his boyhood club to the Europa League final, where they lost to Aston Villa.
Read also: Liverpool agree £120m Barcola deal with only the medical left
Freiburg’s succession was already sorted
Freiburg had planned for the departure. Mio Backhaus arrived from Werder Bremen for €12m earlier in the window as Atubolu’s successor, and long-running Premier League and Serie A interest never converted into a bid the club could act on.
At Frankfurt, Atubolu walks into a project run by Adi Hütter, who returned as head coach on 31 May 2026 on a contract to 2029. Sporting director Markus Krösche has driven the goalkeeper hunt after the Brentford result.
Frankfurt open their Bundesliga season away to Union Berlin on Saturday, 29 August. The German transfer window closes the following Tuesday, 1 September.
Read also: Alpine make their move: 2027 driver decision reportedly made
Read also: Barcola inches closer while Manchester City keep chasing Enzo Fernandez
