Toppmöller speaks on Alario's availability: "He will be an option soon."
Speaking at a Monday presser, Eintracht Frankfurt trainer Dino Toppmöller provided an update on a center-forward option many may have forgotten about.
After a 0-0 draw yesterday very much emblematic of the problems facing his squad, SGE trainer Dino Toppmöller commented on the status of the one center forward he hasn't been able to turn to yet. Argentine striker Lucas Alario - on the mend from knee surgery over the summer - is the only remaining alternative after Omar Marmoush (one league goal) and Jessic Ngankam (no league goals).
Signed for a reported €6 million from Bayer 04 Leverkusen in the summer of 2022, Alario made 25 appearances (mostly in relief) across all competitions under previous trainer Oliver Glasner last season. He netted one goal in the league and another one in the Pokal. The 30-year-old did find the back of the net much more often in his two previous seasons with Leverkusen.
Speaking at a Monday presser, Toppmöller expressed confidence that Alario could once again return to the squad and recapture his form. The nine-times-capped Argentine international scored 15 goals across all competitions during the 2020/21 cycle and netted seven tallies for Germany's red company team the year thereafter.
"He will be an option soon," Toppmöller said of the veteran, "I definitely have a good feeling because he is a good goal-scorer. One saw that again today in training. He has a good sense of where the ball can go."
"It remains up to him," Toppmöller added as a means of emphasizing that there would be no free passes, "Everyone has to prove themselves. Football is a team sport. The lads have to feel as if he's ready to step it up and contribute."