Omar Marmoush: Who is Eintracht Frankfurt's Egyptian striker with links to Mo Salah and Alphonso Davies?
Omar Marmoush plays for Eintracht Frankfurt, scored a Bundesliga debut goal for VfB Stuttgart, is a friend of Mohamed Salah and could also have played alongside Alphonso Davies. Confused? Allow bundesliga.com to fill in the blanks...
Stats correct as of 9 December 2023
Age: 24 (born 7 February 1999)
Club: Eintracht Frankfurt
Position: Forward
Country: Egypt (24 caps, four goals)
Key stats
Marmoush moved from Wolfsburg to Stuttgart on summer 2021 deadline day, with 12 first-team appearances under his belt. He got his first taste of the Bundesliga in May 2020, as reward for his nine goals in 15 outings for the reserve team in the 2019/20 Regionalliga Nord (fourth on the German football pyramid).
Marmoush also has the experience of 21 Bundesliga 2 appearances. The 6'0 Egypt international spent the 2020/21 season on loan at St. Pauli, making 19 starts. He wrote his name in hero-glyphics with goal-and-assist showings against Nuremberg and Eintracht Braunschweig, whilst scoring in successive matches twice and seven times all told.
In contrast, Marmoush needed just 88 minutes to open his Stuttgart account. It was one of two shots he landed on target from six debut attempts. The ex-Wadi Degla right-footer left more than a few Frankfurt players needing a Cairo-practor to boot, with a robust defensive effort totalling 23 challenges won. One of the performances that saw him voted Rookie of the Month for September 2021.
Marmoush returned to parent club Wolfsburg at the end of 2021/22, having become a full Egypt international - even scoring the winning goal on his debut in the 1-0 win over Libya in October 2021. He was named in the Egypt squad for the delayed 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, before reeling in a second Rookie of the Month award for March 2022.
He agreed a transfer to Frankfurt in summer 2023 and quickly hit the ground running at Deutsche Bank Park, smashing in six Bundesliga goals in his first 10 league outings for the Eagles, as well as three in three in the UEFA Europa Conference League. A goal and two assists against Bayern Munich - contributing to a 5-1 win - saw him match his best-ever full-season statistics (seven goals, three assists), after just 14 games of the campaign.
Watch: The best of Omar Marmoush so far in 2023/24
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Plays a bit like: Andrej Kramarić
Although a centre-forward by trade and not shy of a shot, having averaged two per game over his first 10 appearances of 2023/24, the Cairo native often finds himself moved into wide attacking positions. Admittedly eight years his junior, Marmoush has an extra yard of pace on the Kramarić we know now, but we've seen the Hoffenheim forward play everywhere across the front line to great effect. A role we're already seeing Marmoush fulfil now.
Did you know?
Marmoush has only recently received his first senior international cap, but was previously already in regular contact with the poster boy of Egyptian football, Liverpool forward Salah.
"We're in touch. The contact between the Egyptian players in Europe is very good," he told the St. Pauli website when quizzed on the two-time African Player of the Year. "We try to support each other because we know it isn't easy to make the transition to Europe."
That being said, as a Canadian citizen - his parents worked in Canada for six years and have Canadian passports - Marmoush could also have lined up in the same national team as Bayern left-back Davies instead.
What they're saying
"He works extremely hard and is hard to defend against. His pace makes him an akward opponent for defenders when he runs in behind them. I like that he is very diligent and always listens. His goals are a reward for his effort." - Frankfurt head coach Dino Toppmöller
"Over the past year, Omar has come on in leaps and bounds with good performances in the U23s, and that has seen him dip his toes into the Bundesliga and with the senior squad. Now he needs to gradually get used to playing at Bundesliga level, so that he can take it to the next step." - Wolfsburg sporting director Marcel Schäfer
"Omar is a fantastic fit for us. His qualites and versatility make him a great addition to our squad." - Former Stuttgart sporting director Sven Mislintat
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