Goal conceded after less than three minutes: Noah Atubolu endures a turbulent debut at Eintracht Frankfurt

Just one day after the announcement of his move to Eintracht Frankfurt, Noah Atubolu endured a hectic debut for his new club.

Less than three minutes into the Bundesliga opener against Union Berlin, the keeper was already picking the ball out of his net. The 24-year-old was not at fault: after a corner, Emmanuel Latte Lath headed home from point-blank range. It was a nightmare start for Atubolu.

That frustration did not last long. Younes Ebnoutalib turned the game around soon after with a brace in 51 seconds for the Eagles in the 10th and 11th minutes. The forward then struck again after the break in the 67th minute.

Even so, Atubolu has had turbulent weeks. In May, at the urging of his then advisers from Epic Sports, he submitted a transfer request at SC Freiburg and rejected a contract extension. He wanted a move to the Premier League this summer. The agency had apparently held out the prospect of opportunities at several top clubs. Nothing came of it, though. Freiburg responded by signing Mio Backhaus from Werder Bremen for €12 million.

Adi Hütter on Atubolu debut: "Probably not everything will go perfectly"

Friday finally brought official confirmation of Atubolu's one-year loan move to Frankfurt. That left him with little time to prepare for his debut. "Probably not everything will go perfectly. On the other hand, Noah has a great deal of Bundesliga experience, was in the Europa League final not long ago and I think he will have a good game today," said Eintracht coach Adi Hütter before the match on Sky.

Recently, the goalkeeping situation in Frankfurt had also become more tense. Hütter had recently demoted Kaua Santos to number two after a string of mistakes. At the same time, reserve goalkeeper Michael Zetterer is said to be on the verge of a move to Leeds United.

For Hütter, Atubolu was the right solution: "The transfer window is not closed yet. We are still in a position to do something. That is how it came about, the door opened. Kaua made us doubt a little, especially in Brentford (Frankfurt lost a friendly there 7-0, editor's note). Then there was the possibility of getting Noah Atubolu. That is very important for us. He is a player who is in the orbit of the national team."

Even though Atubolu's loan initially runs only until next summer, the keeper could stay in Frankfurt beyond that. As Sky report, an obligation to buy has been agreed. That would mean SC Freiburg are due €13 million next summer. According to kicker , Eintracht will initially pay a loan fee of €1 million, while the obligation to buy stands at €12.5 million. Performance-related bonus payments can take the total sum up to €16 million.