Hull City had made an offer to sign Elye Wahi from Eintracht Frankfurt – but Ivory Coast international has turned down the opportunity to move to the Tigers
Elye Wahi has rejected the chance to join Hull City(Image: Getty Images)
Eintracht Frankfurt forward Elye Wahi has rejected the chance to move to Hull City this summer.
Wahi, 23, joined Frankfurt from Marseille for £25million in January 2025 but has since struggled for form at the Bundesliga club. Indeed, he has scored just once in 25 appearances during his time at The Eagles.
But he did spent the second half of last season at Ligue 1 side Nice and impressed, netting nine goals in 19 matches as he helped the club remain the French top-flight. And according to L’Equipe, it’s believed that Wahi is prioritising a return to Nice this summer despite receiving approaches from Hull and Serie A outfit Lazio.
Nice have been working to reach an agreement for Wahi with Frankfurt believed to be wanting almost £8.5m for the forward, though a loan with an obligation to buy could be on the table.
Although Hull likely won’t be signing Wahi, Sergej Jakirovic is still expecting a new No.9 to arrive through the MKM Stadium doors before Saturday’s Premier League curtain-raiser against Manchester United.
Speaking after the Tigers were held to a goalless draw against Nice on Saturday, Jakirovic said: “We are working on that, and I hope in the next few days we will get at least one striker, maybe two. We need more strikers because of injuries, and the season is very long. We have already spoken with some players, so we will see when we finish.
“I think it will be in the next two or three days. We also need players in the winger position. We need better competition there, so that if you do not start, you will come later and make an impact. In this position, we need players who can make a difference.
“We need match winners because we had a few very nice situations in the box and around the box against Nice that should be a one hundred per cent chance.”
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City completed the signing of Joe Gelhardt on a £4.5m permanent deal from Leeds United on Saturday, but he is expected to miss the start of the season with an ankle injury.
While it’s not thought to be serious, Gelhardt is poised to be out for the game at home to United, the trip to Stoke City in the Carabao Cup, and Coventry City in the Premier League.
It leaves Oliver McBurnie as Hull’s only recognised striker in their squad following Kyle Joseph’s move to Middlesbrough, leaving the Tigers light in that position.
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