Jean-Mattéo Bahoya: “The Bundesliga was the ideal choice for me”

French Football Weekly: You are coming out of a trying season concluded by the Euro U19 with the French team in Northern Ireland. How do you feel before starting your first full season in Germany?

Jean-Mattheo Bahoya: Physically, I feel good. We had a little break after the Euro and it’s been two weeks since I resumed collective training with Frankfurt. I’m trying to make up for this “lost month” so to speak. But my first feelings are very good.

FM: A frustrating tournament with a defeat in the final against Spain (2-0). You were a starter against the Iberians, what did you lack to win the title?

JMB: In the final, clearly efficient. They weren’t better than us in the match but the difference came from their coldness in both areas. We lacked a few details and that gave them the advantage in this match.

FM: What is your view of your generation and what future do you think it has under the Bleuets jersey?

JMB: We have a generation with a lot of talent. Most of the players show it with big performances in their club. I would say that we are still quite precocious, because it is rare that so many young people play so much in a club. To come back to the Euro, it is surely a failure because we wanted to go for the victory in the final. Now, we have shown certain qualities and we have proven that we are capable of doing great things collectively. We are already focused on the World Cup in a year (the 2025 U20 World Cup will be played in Chile, editor’s note).

FM: We’re going to go back a bit now and return to Angers. You talk about precocity but you are an example in this area because you made your debut with the SCO on January 6, 2023 at only 17 years old. How did you experience such a moment?

JMB: Ready, you never know if you are until you have played. I was impatient, yes, because it was my training club and I had the ambition to take my first steps as a pro with the SCO. I had the chance to take them there and I am proud of it.

FM: However, you are making your debut in a listless team in Ligue 1. There are surely better ways to make your professional debut…

JMB: I started at a very complicated time for the club in terms of sport. It was tough both in terms of content and results. That’s why we had to collect points quickly to try to save ourselves. For my part, I had to perform well from the start to help the team as much as possible. To gain experience, coach Dujeux (Alexandre Dujeux, editor’s note) helped me in this regard.

“I was a good fit for the Eintracht Frankfurt project”

FM: More generally, what do you remember from your training at the SCO?

JMB: I spent nine years in Angers. It was very good and I enjoyed my training there. I was always well supervised by very competent educators whether in pre-training or with the A’s. I met people who allowed me to grow and improve on a daily basis.

FM: Finally, you have given back to the club with a remarkable start to the 2023-2024 season with 8 goals scored in Ligue 2? Despite your departure in the winter transfer window, do you feel that you have greatly contributed to Angers’ rise?

JMB: Obviously, I’m not going to hide because I feel like I contributed to it by doing great things with the team. I helped with the promotion. It was also a totally different season. We didn’t have the same squad and we were much more liberated on the field. It was clearly more conducive to my blossoming as the context around the team was healthier. I had less pressure and everyone was more relaxed.

FM: You decided to join Eintracht Frankfurt last January. Why this choice?

JMB: The club spoke to me right away. It is a world-renowned institution with great ambitions. Coach Dino Toppmoller also convinced me because he told me about his sports project and that spoke to me directly. I was in line with the project.

FM: You have joined a contingent of players born in France like Eric-Junior Dina Ebimbe or Farès Chaïbi. Does this help you on a daily basis, particularly in terms of integration?

JMB: There are also Niels (Nkounkou, editor’s note), Hugo (Ekitike, editor’s note). There are a lot of French speakers, we get along very well so that obviously helps my integration. It’s also one of the reasons that pushed me to join Eintracht. It’s what I wanted and I’m very happy to be here.

“My goal is to become a starter for the team”

FM: How do you view your first steps with Eintracht Frankfurt?

JMB: My first six months were about adaptation. I had to digest a move from Ligue 2 to the Bundesliga, you learn a lot at that time. It’s clearly not the same football, the same atmosphere, the same expectations so I had to adapt. But today, I’m ready and I have other goals.

FM: Precisely, what are your goals for this 2024-2025 season? Your first that you will play in its entirety in Germany.

JMB: I will try to play as much as possible to gain experience and continue to progress. It is above all up to me to fight to deserve it; but my long-term goal is to become a regular for the team. That is my wish: to succeed here and help the team achieve its goals.

FM: Kingsley Coman, Randal Kolo Muani, Marcus Thuram, Ousmane Dembélé… many French strikers have exploded in Germany in recent years. Did that persuade you in your decision to go to the Bundesliga?

JMB: I know, and I have also been told, that I have a game that is favorable for the Bundesliga. There are spaces and the percussion players you mentioned have often succeeded in this championship in recent years. It was the ideal choice for me and it necessarily weighed in my final decision.

FM: Joining the French Espoirs team is surely also a goal for you this season.

JMB: When you’re in the French U19 team, the Espoirs are bound to make you want to play. It’s the next step, the logical continuation. In this sense, I’m going to do everything I can to achieve it this year.