Noah Atubolu has left SC Freiburg and joined Eintracht Frankfurt. The German goalkeeper moves initially on a season-long loan, as confirmed by the club and reporting from www.lmtonline.com.
The transfer ends a protracted saga surrounding the 24-year-old, who had only one year left on his Freiburg contract. To facilitate the loan with an option to buy, Atubolu extended his deal with the Breisgau club. This prevents him from leaving as a free agent next summer. The option will become an obligation to buy under certain conditions.
Why did Atubolu leave SC Freiburg?
Noah Atubolu had expressed his desire to leave the club. He was left out of the squad for the first three competitive matches of the season, in both the German Cup and the Conference League qualifiers. Atubolu was a key player last season in Freiburg's run to the Europa League final, which they lost to Aston Villa. During the summer, he had also been linked with a move to Aston Villa. His departure forces the club, which finished seventh in the Bundesliga last season with 47 points, to reorganize.
Who replaces Atubolu in goal?
As a direct replacement, SC Freiburg signed Germany Under-21 goalkeeper Mio Backhaus from Werder Bremen. Backhaus comes from the very club Freiburg faces on the first matchday of the new Bundesliga season. Sporting director Jochen Saier commented on the turbulent period: "We have very complicated weeks and months behind us." The signing of Backhaus aims to bring stability to the goalkeeping position, while the team conceded 57 goals against 51 scored last season for a -6 goal difference.
What does the move mean for the Bundesliga?
The transfer was completed on the day the Bundesliga season started. The league kicked off with champions Bayern Munich playing Stuttgart on Friday. Eintracht Frankfurt, Atubolu's new employer, plays at Union Berlin on Saturday. SC Freiburg faces Werder Bremen on Sunday, the former club of new signing Backhaus. For Freiburg, this is the opener ahead of their next fixture against SC Paderborn 07 on September 5th, which can be found on our fixtures page.
What's next for SC Freiburg?
The SC Freiburg squad must regroup without Atubolu. The club ended the 2025 season with 13 wins, 8 draws, and 13 losses, finishing 42 points behind leaders Bayern Munich in the final table. Currently, the team is without three players: F. Muslija, P. Osterhage, and R. Yamamoto, whose status can be tracked on our injuries page. The sporting leadership under Jochen Saier has reacted by signing Backhaus. The coming weeks will show how the goalkeeper position develops as the team aims for a high placing in the standings table.
