Randal Kolo Muani has been storming through the Bundesliga at high speed this season. He might even be fast enough to catch the train to the World Cup yet. He could make his debut for the French national team on Thursday.
He was beaming up to both ears when he heard about the nomination last week, reported Frankfurt coach Oliver Glasner about his protégé. The permanent grin continued for the time being. Randal Kolo Muani’s joy was also evident this Tuesday when he took part in his first press conference as an international player at the French Football Federation’s training centre, about 50 kilometres southwest of Paris. As a future national player, mind you, because the attacker will not be able to make his debut for “Les Bleus” in the Nations League until Thursday (8.45 pm) against Austria at the earliest. Another chance comes on Sunday against Denmark at the same time.
Surprise reward for strong start
“I didn’t expect this selection to come at all. It’s a nice surprise,” the 23-year-old told us. It is the reward for the past weeks. The striker found his place at Eintracht straight away. He could only have dreamt of this steep rise when he signed his contract in March. At the time, it was relatively unlikely that Eintracht would be represented internationally this season. But winning the Europa League title, as we all know, secured participation in the Champions League – and Kolo Muani now the big stage.
The newcomer from Nantes has been convincing there so far. Dynamic, fast, powerful, a strong finisher – Kolo Muani has the ideal prerequisites for a striker. He is a completely different type of player than team-mate Rafael Borré, who mostly played as the only striker in the pre-season. Kolo Muani seems to be the piece of the puzzle that has been missing from the squad since André Silva’s transfer. He contributed two goals and four assists in seven mostly convincing Bundesliga games so far. Only in the recent 3:1 win in Stuttgart did he fail to find the net for the first time.
“Randal has a lot of quality. He brings presence, takes depth with him and has good efficiency,” said national coach Didier Deschamps, explaining his choice. He was last allowed to appear with Eintracht in the premier league in his home country Marseille and celebrated a 1-0 victory. “The feeling of being with the national team is more overwhelming, stronger than in the Champions League. Here we have a nation behind us. We represent a country. We have two stars on the jersey, it’s more than a dream,” enthused the potential debutant.
Qatar in mind
The right-footer was still holding back on big words. “I don’t know if I have developed, but I am trying to slowly adapt to the Bundesliga. It’s a different style of play than in Ligue 1. I’m still learning,” he stressed modestly. The move to Eintracht was a good decision, he added.
Nevertheless, he approaches the new task with confidence. Behind Kylian Mbappé, Karim Benzema and Co, the big names in the world champions’ attack, he doesn’t just want to hide and shows patience. “Every striker has his time. You have to work out a confidence level, the list of candidates in attack is long. But I have my place now. It’s also up to me to continue to prove myself at my club in the future,” said Kolo Muani. The World Cup in Qatar has not been an issue so far, but that has now changed: “It’s happening very quickly. But if I’m here, it’s because I can bid for the World Cup. It is now in the back of my mind. “
