Max Kruse is back on the football stage – albeit not the big one. After his last stints with VfL Wolfsburg and 1. FC Union Berlin, the former national player has now landed in the Westphalian province with SC Paderborn in the 2nd Bundesliga.
The East Westphalian club did not explicitly announce the contract period of the former German national player, but apparently the 35-year-old will initially receive a contract for one season. “It’s finally that time again, I can kick the ball again,” said the prominent newcomer.
“The talks were very, very good right from the start and convinced me,” said Kruse, who received the shirt number 10: “I’m really into football, I’m hungry for success and I want to attack with SC Paderborn 07 at the top!” Paderborn’s head of sport Benjamin Weber explained: “Max’s footballing qualities and goal instinct are undisputed. His leadership strength and his experience at national and international level will also help us a lot.”
Retired in Wolfsburg
The 35-year-old Kruse, who was retired by coach Niko Kovac from VfL Wolfsburg in November last year, believes that he can play a good role with his new team in the strong and attractive second division. “With the Bundesliga relegated team, enormous quality has been added to the league. I’m optimistic that we’ll play attractive football again this year,” said Kruse. “I’m looking forward to the fans and I hope that everyone will welcome me in the team.”
His career has been quite successful so far with 14 international matches and participation in the Olympics in Tokyo. His statistics include 370 first and second division games for Wolfsburg, Union, Borussia Mönchengladbach, Werder Bremen, SC Freiburg and FC St. Pauli. He scored 117 goals. But Kruse also made headlines off the field and most recently earned his money in poker tournaments. At the Olympics, he proposed to his girlfriend in front of the cameras.
In terms of sport, such an experienced player with a risk of scoring can certainly help the second division team. “We were a bit lacking in game maturity recently,” said coach Lukas Kwasniok last Sunday at the start of training. The club lost one of their top scorers in Marvin Pieringer (10 goals) and an experienced striker in Dennis Srbeny (4). In addition, striker Felix Platte (7) is prone to injury. Kruse is happy that he can now get back on board. “I’m really into football,” he said.
