Leicester City defender Victor Kristiansen has opened up on his last few months as a Leicester City player in which he has transformed from a player expected to leave into a regular first-team starter.
After spending the 2023-2024 season out on loan, Victor Kristiansen was widely expected to depart on a permanent deal.
But after Enzo Maresca departed for Chelsea and Steve Cooper was appointed as a replacement, things changed for Kristiansen, who has now emerged as a first-team regular for Leicester City this season.
Kristiansen has started all three Premier League games this current campaign and is likely to retain his place in the starting XI for this weekend’s visit to Crystal Palace.
Victor Kristiansen admits he expected Leicester City departure
Since returning to the fold Kristiansen has been one of the two first-choice full-backs for the Foxes, with James Justin switching to the right-hand side of the back four and keeping Ricardo Pereira out of the side.
It’s been a drastic change in fortunes after he was loaned out to Bologna, just six months after joining Leicester while Brendan Rodgers was in charge before suffering relegation to the Championship.
And while on international duty with Denmark, where the 21-year-old played in both games, Kristiansen admitted that he was unsure if his long-term future was in the East Midlands.
Speaking to Danish outlet Ekstra Bladet, he said: “It was uncertain and I was in a bit of a grey area. But I’m happy to be a Leicester player again. There is a new boss who has to look after his employees, this is how it is in all workplaces. Fortunately, he saw my way.
“I think we are in a good place. But it is clear that as a promotion side, we have to fight to maintain our position in the Premier League.”
🇩🇰 Victor Kristiansen bagging an assist and a clean sheet against Serbia yesterday
Him and Vestergaard have both had a good international break, starting in both wins
🇩🇰 Denmark 2 – 0 Switzerland 🇨🇭
🇩🇰 Denmark 2 – 0 Serbia 🇷🇸
pic.twitter.com/v58GU8JN8V— 𝙇𝘾𝙁𝘾 𝙎𝙋 (@LCFCshitposting) September 9, 2024
What has Steve Cooper said about Victor Kristiansen’s Leicester future?
The arrival of Cooper sparked a new lease of life into Kristiansen and the full-back has been one of the Foxes’ more consistent players this season.
But despite a fresh start under a new manager, the Leicester boss revealed that he didn’t try and convince the left-back to stay at the King Power Stadium.
Cooper said: “I won’t convince anybody to play here. They’ve got to want to play here. I don’t care who it is. There’s no convincing. You’re either 100 per cent committed or you’re not. These guys are.
With Victor, he did have a good season and a positive experience last year in Italy. He played in a team that have brought a lot of interest in the players that have played for them. He was a good part of that. We’ve definitely got a player back off a positive loan. There’s been a change of manager here and it can be seen as a clean slate and a fresh opportunity.
“That’s exactly how we’ve dealt with him. Through pre-season, he played his way into the team. For him and everybody else, they have to play well to stay in the team.”
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