😮 He nearly quit: why this SGE star considered ending his career | OneFootball

As early as May this year – shortly after qualifying for the Champions League with Eintracht Frankfurt – Rasmus Kristensen revealed that he actually wanted to quit playing football.

In a conversation with the magazine ‘11Freunde’, the Frankfurt fan favorite has now spoken about the reasons. After Denmark's exit in the round of 16 at the 2024 European Championship, he was "very close" to ending his career.

During his time at Leeds United and AS Roma, he lost confidence in himself and felt that he was not made for the big football stage, both physically and mentally.

Many factors contributed to these considerations: coaches, results, journalists, social media. The full-back also took his job home with him more and more often.

📸 Alex Grimm - 2025 Getty Images

What ultimately prevented him from ending his career was Eintracht's sporting director Markus Krösche. "He gave me a good feeling about the club, the team, and my role. And he gave me what I desperately needed: trust," Kristensen explained to ‘11Freunde’.

After further discussions with Dino Toppmöller and his former Leeds colleague Robin Koch, he was convinced of the move, which initially took place on loan and then resulted in a commitment until 2029.

Everyone in Frankfurt is now likely glad that Kristensen did not hang up his football boots for good. In the Main metropolis, he has since become a true leader, bringing with him a powerful overall package.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.

📸 Alex Grimm - 2025 Getty Images