A keen dribbler on the hunt for goals | OneFootball

He first honed his eye for goal as a teenager in northern France, but it was in the south of the country where Frankfurt’s new number 17 Elye Wahi blossomed into the player he is today.

Elye Wahi was just 13 years old at the start of the 2016/17 season, but his goals record as a teenager in northern France was already attracting considerable attention. Having scored a remarkable 89 times for SM Caen’s U14 and U15 teams, the Frenchman with Ivorian roots has continued to showcase those innate scoring and creative instincts at professional level, registering 47 goals and 14 assists since his senior debut in 2020.

“Elye is a pacey striker who is good in the box and has a superb eye for goal,” said board member for sport Markus Krösche after Wahi, now 22, completed his move to the Eagles. He will wear the number 17 at Deutsche Bank Park – a shirt with special significance at Eintracht as it used to belong to none other than former captain Seppl Rode.

After leaving Caen, the 15-year-old Wahi enjoyed a brief spell at Montfermeil before joining Montpellier. It was there where he reunited with head of youth development Francis de Taddeo, who knew all about the youngster’s technical skillset, dribbling abilities and goalscoring exploits from his time in a similar role at Caen. Wahi continued to go from strength to strength in the south of France, representing Montpellier’s U19 and reserve teams while also turning out for Les Bleus at youth level for the first time in 2019.

Wahi made his Ligue 1 debut as a 17-year-old on 16 December 2020 and remained part of the first-team squad under head coach Michel Der Zakaria. He didn’t have to wait long for his first goal in France’s top flight, scoring against Monaco on 15 January 2021 – just under a month after his senior bow against Metz. The Paris native reached double figures the following campaign, at the time becoming the third-youngest player after Kylian Mbappé and Ousmane Dembélé to score at least ten Ligue 1 goals in a single season. He nearly doubled that tally in 2022/23 when he hit 19 goals in 33 league appearances – including all four in an astonishing 5-4 defeat at Olympique Lyonnais on the final day of the season.

Debut against Germany

The striker made his debut for France U21s under Sylvain Ripoll during the 2022/23 season, going on to represent them 13 times in total. He has also played for the U23s on two occasions, under the tutelage of French goalscoring legend Thierry Henry.

Wahi scored his final goals for Montpellier on the last day of the 2022/23 campaign, netting twice away to Stade Reims. He then joined RC Lens, where he registered 12 goals in 36 appearances in all competitions and made his debut in both the UEFA Champions League and Europa League – where Lens faced SC Freiburg in the knockout play-off round. Wahi returned to the Mediterranean coast after just a year back in the north of France, joining a Marseille side who, like his latest employers in the heart of Europe, were founded in 1899.

Wahi describes the Eagles as “a big club I’ve heard a lot of positive things about”, adding: “I knew straight away that I wanted to seize the chance to come here. I want to repay the faith that’s been shown in me with good performances and goals.”