Eintracht Frankfurt's pre-season preparations have unravelled badly, and the club is now scrambling to reshape their squad before the competitive season begins. A 0-7 defeat to Brentford in their final warm-up match exposed deep problems between the posts and across the pitch, forcing sporting director Markus Krösche into a sharp reversal of his earlier position. Just weeks ago, Krösche had publicly insisted there was no need to change the goalkeeping setup. That stance is now gone.

Kaua Santos, who was handed the number one shirt after Kevin Trapp's departure, produced another poor display against Brentford and has reportedly lost the confidence of coach Adi Hütter entirely. The club wants to move Santos on before the window closes, with a loan or permanent sale both acceptable outcomes. Noah Atubolu of SC Freiburg is the preferred replacement, though Freiburg's asking price of around 15 to 20 million euros presents a significant obstacle. Former fan favourite Lukas Hradecky, now at AS Monaco, has also been mentioned as an alternative option.

The goalkeeping crisis is not the only concern. Captain Robin Koch was forced off injured during the Brentford game after a blow to the cervical spine, adding pressure on a defensive unit already short of quality. Hütter has acknowledged the squad is not where he needs it to be, and the search for a centre-back and a forward continues. Arnaud Kalimuendo remains a target in attack, while several fringe players including Michy Batshuayi and Ellyes Skhiri are being moved on to free up funds. Frankfurt's DFB-Pokal opener against fifth-tier SC St. Tönis on August 21 offers little time to fix what went wrong.