Jeremie Frimpong has elevated his persona to become one of the most exciting full-backs in Europe. The 24-year-old has been a first-team starter for Xabi Alonso and played a key role in Bayer Leverkusen’s impressive success over the last few seasons.
Frimpong helped the German side win the 2023/24 Bundesliga title by going the entire campaign undefeated. He had 16 goal contributions (nine goals, seven assists) in 31 games en route to the last season.
This time around, Bayer Leverkusen are eight points behind Bayern Munich in the title race. Frimpong, however, has maintained his consistency. He’s managed 13 goal contributions (three goals, 10 assists) in 34 matches across all competitions. All his good work is not going unnoticed either.
The 24-year-old recently signed a brand new boot deal with American brand New Balance. The deal is worth a whopping £20 million, claims the Daily Mail. This puts him on the same scale in boot deals alongside the likes of Erling Haaland with Nike and Lionel Messi with Adidas.
This is because New Balance views Frimpong as ‘the most exciting right-back in Europe’. They also believe that his brand value will exponentially rise once he joins a major European club. The Dutchman currently has a contract with the Bundesliga side until 2028, but that doesn’t rule out a summer transfer.
It’s now being reported by TeamTalk that Frimpong has a ‘gentlemen’s agreement’ with Bayer Leverkusen where they’ll at least indulge bids for his transfer. The German side are reportedly going to let him leave in case an offer in the region of around £33.1 million is made by any interested party.
Frimpong had a release clause in his contract, which has now expired. However, they’ll still consider a similar transfer fee to consider letting him leave. Earlier in the 2024/25 season, the full-back insisted that he isn’t letting the chatter on his future impact his game.
He stated: “I’ve always heard things about me, that I’m going there, there or there. And I’m still here. When your name is linked with a big club, you can lose your concentration and get too excited. But you don’t even know if it’s true or not. It’s just a rumor. Then you get excited for no reason. These rumors are part of football, so I don’t let them affect me.”
With that being said, this isn’t swaying down interest in his services from prominent clubs.
Manchester City are being strongly linked to the Dutchman. It has even been reported by CaughtOffside that The Cityzens are planning to spend a huge £166 million to sign both Frimpong and Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen in the 2025 summer window.
Their interest in Frimpong could be due to their desire to find Kyle Walker’s replacement. After sending the Englishman on loan at AC Milan in the recently concluded winter window, City couldn’t sign anyone to replace him. Pep Guardiola’s side are rumoured to permanently sell Walker, which is why they are interested in signing a vibrant, young right-back like Frimpong.
It’s also being rumoured that Manchester City have agreed personal terms with the Dutchman’s representatives over a summer move. Frimpong could be an exciting addition to Guardiola’s side and will compete for that right-back role with Rico Lewis. The Cityzens will, although, expect to face stiff competition for Frimpong’s services.
Earlier in the 2024/25 season, Bild reporter Christian Falk reported that Liverpool are interested in Frimpong. They even spoke to the full-back’s entourage and believe he’ll be an ideal fit for the system of their Dutch manager Arne Slot.
Because of the uncertainty over the future of Trent Alexander-Arnold, whose contract expires at the end of June (2025), the Reds might consider Frimpong as a possible replacement.
At this point, a two-horse race is expected for Frimpong’s services. Manchester United reportedly also held talks with Frimpong’s representatives in the 2024 summer window, but those links have since diminished.
Manchester City and Liverpool could end up battling for the 24-year-old’s services in the summer. Frimpong could be more attracted by a move to the Etihad Stadium.
He played for Manchester City’s youth academy and joined them as a 10-year-old in 2010. He ended up joining Celtic in 2019 before appearing for the Cityzens’ senior team. But a return to England to play under Pep Guardiola could be a temptation he won’t resist if Manchester City come calling after the 2024/25 season.
