According to research by the specialist magazine, based on numerous background conversations with members of the top leadership, neither Krösche himself nor the club are working towards a split this summer.
Krösche is therefore receiving "full backing" from the SGE supervisory board. Just a few days earlier, Bild had painted a very different picture. It claimed the supervisory board meeting on 2 September would discuss how to begin bringing Krösche's time at the club to an early end. Mathias Beck, supervisory board chairman and Eintracht president, has now firmly rejected that.
"The supervisory board meeting on Wednesday is a regularly scheduled meeting that has been planned for a long time. Naturally, it will cover all the topics of the summer, including sporting matters. I will not comment publicly on reports about Markus Krösche. The fact is, he has a current contract (until 2028, editor's note), declared himself clearly committed to Eintracht Frankfurt two months ago and, with his team, is in the final straight of the transfer window. There is therefore no reason to speculate about the future of Markus Krösche," Beck is quoted as saying by kicker.
Markus Krösche on the way out at Eintracht Frankfurt? "Stink bombs to stir up unrest"
More broadly, kicker came away from background conversations with the credible impression that there was an "ever-present surprise" inside the club over the rumours of a split. That did not appear staged. Instead, in this explosive matter, it could be a case of "stink bombs" intended "to stir up unrest", driven by the "vanities" of certain individuals. However, it remains "mysterious" exactly how Bild am Sonntag obtained any such information. But there is room for doubt that everyone involved at Eintracht is currently pulling in the same direction.
On Sunday evening, Lothar Matthäus struck a similar note on Sky90: "Something is being played behind the scenes here against Markus Krösche because perhaps some people are jealous of him," the record Germany international speculated.
According to kicker, there has at least been no falling-out, as suggested in the relevant Bild article, between sporting director Krösche, chiefly responsible for SGE's turbulent and sluggish transfer period, and coach Adi Hütter. Although the Austrian is by no means delighted that key personnel decisions were only made around the start of the season, there can be no talk of a major bust-up. After all, Hütter got two of his preferred signings in Noah Atubolu and centre-back Lilian Brassier.
Getty ImagesEintracht Frankfurt: Three player sales for more than €60 million?
Even after the opening matchday, when Eintracht let a 3-1 lead at Union Berlin slip very late on and returned from the capital with only a point, plenty could still happen in Frankfurt before deadline day. With Arnau Kalimuendo, who already impressed on loan from Nottingham at SGE in the second half of the season with six goals in 19 games, there is still hope of another loan deal, kicker reports.
Meanwhile, a move by Hugo Larsson to the Premier League could still bring in up to €25 million for SGE. The midfielder was recently in London with Eintracht's permission to negotiate with two clubs, one of them Crystal Palace. Jean-Matteo Bahoya, too, was supposed to bring SGE almost €20 million with his move to Hull City, but according to Sport1 the player himself rejected the deal.
Another sale, one not originally planned, could also still materialise in the final hours of the transfer window. According to matching media reports, Al-Ittihad are pursuing Ritsu Doan, and a move to the desert for around €18 million is now even considered likely.
Then came the reports of a possible Krösche departure, right in the middle of an already murky transfer tangle. That was only a few weeks after AC Milan had unsuccessfully tried to lure the 45-year-old away. In June, however, Krösche gave the Rossoneri a final rejection and according to kicker also turned down a personally highly lucrative offer in the process. Milan had offered him €40 million over four years, it was said.
Getty ImagesKrösche at Eintracht Frankfurt under fire for the first time because of Riera
Last season, significant cracks appeared for the first time in Krösche's extremely strong standing at Eintracht, built on numerous top sales. The reason was ultimately the appointment of Albert Riera, which Krösche had chiefly pushed after the dismissal of coach Dino Toppmöller. Riera ultimately failed spectacularly in the Hessian metropolis, turned fans and players against him and had to leave again after only 14 matches and a disappointing eighth-place finish.
As a result, Eintracht are not playing in Europe this season for the first time since Krösche arrived in 2021. As for the departure rumours that have now emerged, he himself at least did not want to comment on them on Saturday. "We're talking about football," he said shortly after the final whistle in Berlin. Even when asked again, Krösche requested that they "leave it at that".