Thomas Kristensen of Udinese Calcio celebrates the victory thanks to which Udinese Calcio remains in Seria A (Photo by Giuseppe Bellini/Getty Images)
Udinese paid a visit to Napoli on Sunday, with the away side looking to pull off their first victory against Napoli since April 3, 2016. The odds were stacked in Napoli’s favor, having taken 22 points from a possible 24 over their past eight league matches and catapulting themselves to the top of the Serie A table. And when Scott McTominay headed home from a corner kick in the 37th minute, it seemed only a matter of time before Udinese succumbed to their 13th consecutive defeat in the Città del Sole. Instead, Le Zebrette would respond immediately with Jesper Karlström intercepting an errant clearance and finding Jurgen Ekkelenkamp, who launched an ambitious effort from the right edge of the box which swerved past Alex Meret and dipped into the bottom left corner.
Just like that, Udinese pushed the mute button on a cacophonous Stadio Diego Armando Maradona and gave themselves a foothold. They dug deep and held firm amidst the Partenopei’s constant pressure, and despite having 38% possession and 8 shots to Napoli’s 18, they managed to escape with a 1-1 draw. One player who proved essential in Udinese’s defense was Thomas Thiesson “TK” Kristensen, blocking one shot, winning two tackles and registering two clearances, and completing 15 out of 21 passes. Going up against a star-studded attack featuring Romelu Lukaku, Matteo Politano and David Neres, Kristensen wasn’t fazed by the occasion and won three out of four ground duels, laying the foundations for one of the biggest upsets of the 2024/25 Serie A season.
Planting the Seeds in Denmark
Born in Galten, Denmark, Thomas is the younger brother of Kasper Kristensen, who plays as a goalkeeper for the Danish 1st Division club Esbjerg fB. He developed at Galten FS’ academy before heading east to Aarhus, the second-biggest city in Denmark. Kristensen joined five-time Danish champions Aarhus Gymnastikforening, or AGF, in 2013, where he remained until 2017.
“I had a good development in AGF’s youth academy, but as a U15 player, I had some struggles and lost some of the happiness from playing football,” stated Kristensen in an exclusive RG interview. “I didn’t really like my coach’s style and the way he handled injured players. I had a bad year and asked myself, ‘Do I really want to continue like this?’ I learned at the end of the year that he would continue being my coach for the next season, and told myself, ‘No, this is not going to happen.’ I wanted to get my joy back, so I went to a lower-division team in Aarhus with a few of my best friends just to enjoy myself and play football again.”
Three months after departing AGF, five-time Danish champions Vejle Boldklub came knocking and offered Kristensen a chance to play in the nation’s preeminent U17 league. Kristensen made the move to Velje, an hour south of Aarhus, and left his family to pursue a college education and live alongside 150 other boys and girls. However, instead of staying put and continuing his academic studies in Velje’s sports secondary school, Kristensen elected to return to Aarhus after just one year in order to be with his family and friends.
During the year in which he was away, Kristensen had matured a lot – both physically and mentally. It’s why, after undergoing a trial with AGF and returning to his boyhood club, his coach asked him if he might consider making the switch from central midfield to central defense, which he duly obliged. Kristensen started to adapt his game and learn the ropes, before suffering a back injury that sidelined him for half a year.
A tall, albeit frail teenager, Kristensen decided to utilize his convalescence to the best of his abilities by hitting the gym and putting on some muscle. After patiently biding his time on the sidelines, he transformed himself into a vital cog in defense for AGF’s U19s and was even entrusted with the captain’s armband.
Making His Mark in Aarhus
Kristensen signed his first professional contract in September 2020, penning a three-year deal, which gave him some much-needed funds to stay on his feet whilst finishing his studies. He was then promoted to the first team and made his debut on May 16, 2021, coming on for the final seconds of a 3-1 win vs. Nordsjælland, before playing the full 90 in a 4-0 defeat to FC Midtjylland in the Danish Superligaen championship round.
On May 28, Kristensen played 120 minutes against Aalborg in the European playoff final, with AGF leveling the scoring at the final second and prevailing on penalties to secure their spot in the UEFA Europa Conference League qualifiers. Just days after that last-gasp victory, Kristensen took home the Martin Jørgensen Talent Award (named after AGF legend and current AGF scout Martin Jørgensen), an annual prize that has been given to the club’s best young prospect since 2014.
He continued his upward momentum in Aarhus and emerged as a starter in central defense during the spring of 2022 over the course of the relegation round. AGF managed to narrowly avoid the drop, finishing one point above his former club Velje, who were relegated to the second tier. He consolidated his spot in the starting line-up during the 2022/23 campaign, racking up 22 appearances in all competitions, but just when he looked set to participate in the championship round, he suffered a knee injury.
TK nevertheless picked up where he left off by starting in their first eight matches of the 2023/24 season – playing the entirety in seven of them. With German defender Yann Aurel Bisseck departing AGF and joining Italian giants Inter Milan for €7.2 million, it seemed that Kristensen would assume his void by staying put and maturing in Aarhus for another season. Little did he know it, but he was about to join his former teammate in Serie A.
New Beginnings in Italy
On September 1, 2023, Udinese completed the deadline day signing of Kristensen for €5 million (the second-highest fee in AGF history after Bisseck), tying him down to a five-year contract. After just 46 professional appearances for AGF, Kristensen was going to be playing outside of Denmark for the first time in his life.
“Between my injury and Bisseck’s sale, it wasn’t planned for me to leave that very summer. AGF wanted me to play another season, and it wasn’t in their minds or my mind to leave already. There were a lot of clubs that were interested in signing me, but Udinese wanted me really badly, and it was an opportunity that neither myself nor the club could say no to. It was a good match, and I’ve already played a lot of games at Udinese and shown a lot of good things in Serie A.”
“I knew of Udinese’s interest for a while, but in the end, it started to become really intense. It went from being not concrete to them making an offer.
Suddenly, there was a deal to take care of and it became really intense. It wasn’t designated for me to leave the club, but AGF gave me the chance to go to Italy and see it myself. They needed to sign a center back to replace me before I put my signature on the paper and signed the contract with Udinese. I went there and sorted out everything, but then the guy who AGF had planned on signing as my replacement told them that he was going to another team. That night, I was sitting here waiting to sign the papers. They ended up signing Mats Knoester from Ferencváros to replace me, and the situation turned around.”
An unused substitute in his first two matches, Kristensen made his Serie A debut on September 24, 2023, in a 2-0 defeat at Fiorentina. He quickly cemented a starting spot in central defense, impressing on the left side and the right side of Udinese’s back three. And whilst there were signs of inexperience, like when he was sent off vs. Genoa after picking up two bookings in the 41st and 48th minute, Kristensen nevertheless surpassed expectations with a propitious maiden voyage in Italy. He averaged 0.9 blocks per 90 (the joint-most in the Udinese squad), 4.8 clearances per 90 (second-most), and 1.2 interceptions per 90 (joint-third most), and out of his 26 appearances, 23 were starts.
“The main difference between Denmark and Italy is the quality of the players. You don't have time to sleep. You don't have time to make naive, stupid mistakes. You cannot give the strikers and the players here too much space. It's a country that’s well-known for their defending, so it was a really good place for me to grow. I feel that after one and a half years in Italy, I've improved a lot defensively. It’s a great league with a lot of quality players, and the defensive aspect is especially very strong.”
Staving off Relegation
Apart from the language barrier and the heightened individual quality, perhaps the biggest difference that Kristensen had to adjust to was his living situation.
“I live in Udine alone, which was a huge difference coming from Denmark where I lived with two of my friends and knew nearly everyone in the entire city. The toughest thing to get used to was suddenly being all by yourself without family close by, and to come home to an empty house. It was difficult managing all this stuff by yourself when you don’t have that guy or girl to come home to and speak with. The only thing in your mind was preparing for tomorrow’s training session or next week’s game. However, this was also a good learning process for me because it made me focus on my career as opposed to other things.”
Despite Kristensen’s promising displays, Udinese suffered a torrid 2023/24 campaign and went through three different managers, with none of them managing to steer Udinese clear of the drop. It meant that, on the final day of the season, Udinese, Frosinone and Empoli were all competing to survive in the top division. Two of those teams would escape relegation by the thinnest of margins, whilst the other team would be joining Sassuolo and Salernitana in Serie B.
Udinese faced off against Frosinone in a do-or-die match, and they managed to keep things tight at the back thanks to an assured performance from Kristensen. The Danish defender blocked four shots, made three clearances and two tackles, whilst he also won three out of four ground duels. Keinan Davis would break the deadlock with 20 minutes left and secure a 1-0 victory for Udinese, whilst Mbaye Niang’s extra-time winner for Empoli against Roma meant that it was Frosinone who suffered the agony of relegation.
“Staying up in Serie A was an unbelievable feeling. The difference between going down to the second tier and staying up is massive.
It’s so important in a place like this, a club that can’t go down to Serie B. We all had a few beers afterward and celebrated together and then went on holiday. It wasn’t the best season, but it ended up being a really nice end to the campaign. I’m very proud of how we handled being under so much pressure. It was a really nice moment and a massive relief.”
Learning Under Runjaić
After staving off the drop at the eleventh hour, Udinese decided to turn over a new leaf and appoint Kosta Runjaić in June 2024. A manager whose sole coaching experience came in Poland’s top-flight and Germany’s lower divisions, expectations were tempered for the Austro-German’s arrival. And with Udinese losing various key players like Walace, Nehuén Pérez and Lazar Samardžić, many tipped the Friulani for yet another relegation dogfight.
Instead, Udinese kicked off the Runjaić era with a 4-0 victory against lower-tier Avellino in the Coppa Italia before holding Bologna to a 1-1 draw and winning their next three matches. They’ve parlayed that strong start into an impressive first half of the campaign, taking points off the likes of Fiorentina, Atalanta and Lazio and winning eight league matches – two more than they achieved in the entirety of 2023/24.
“My relationship with Runjaić is good, I try to do what he asks of me. His style fits how I want to play, which is as an aggressive, wide center back who wants to apply the pressure and who’s not afraid to carry out a high line. I ran into some injuries which sidelined me from the squad for a little bit, but I’ve managed to keep fighting for a place, and I’m now having the game-time that I wanted to have after previously struggling for fitness.”
Udinese currently sit 10th in the table after an encouraging spell that has seen them avoid defeat in six of their last eight matches. And most importantly, with just 14 fixtures remaining, they find themselves 10 points clear of the relegation zone. They are punching above their weight and climbing up the Serie A table thanks in large part to the performances of Kristensen, who has played the full 90 in each of their last six matches. Whilst he has mainly been utilized in central defense, he’s operated as a right back in their last two matches vs. Venezia and Napoli. At 6’6”, Kristensen towers over the opposition, combining anticipation, positional awareness and a strong tackling ability with a formidable physical frame.
He’s gone up against the best strikers in Italy, but none have impressed him more than Torino’s Duván Zapata.
What the Future Holds
Kristensen hasn’t just been able to make a name for himself at the club level, but the international level as well. He’s represented Denmark at the U18, U19, U20 and U21 level, and he looks set to play a pivotal role in defense for his side as they prepare to travel to Slovakia and play in the 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, which will be held from June 11 to June 28. If he can continue building on his impressive performances at the Stadio Friuli, it may only be a matter of time before Denmark manager Brian Riemer hands him a maiden call-up.
Having spent the bulk of his adolescence as a central midfielder, Kristensen is an elegant passer who is skilled at breaking the lines and spreading the ball into the final third. Udinese’s #31 completes 33.5 accurate passes per game – only behind his defensive partners Souleymane Isaak Touré (39.3) and Jaka Bijol (39.1) in Udinese’s squad – and boasts a pass accuracy of 83%, whilst he’s also racking up 2.5 accurate long balls per game, second only to Bijol (3.3) and Christian Kabasele (3.3).
“Being a midfielder in my adolescence provided me with a lot of things in possession and made me so much more comfortable on the ball. Because of my physical package, I would say I’m pretty strong in the duels and fast as well, but above all, I’m a center back who’s very comfortable in possession.”
At 23 years of age, Thomas Kristensen is confirming the positive sensations of his debut Serie A campaign and emerging as the backbone in Udinese’s stalwart backline. His impressive displays in Friuli-Venezia Giulia have piqued the interest of various clubs ranging from Champions League powerhouses like Juventus and Bayer Leverkusen to English clubs like Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City. Premier League side Wolves reportedly had a £12.5 million bid turned down on January 31, falling short of Udinese’s valuation by just £1.2 million.
Instead of plying his trade in England, Kristensen has remained put at Udinese, who are on track to finish in the top-half for the first time in 12 years. However, with a contract that is set to expire in June 2028, it may only be a matter of time before he’s testing his skills in the Premier League.
“Ever since I was a little kid, my dream has always been to play in England. Then, when I got a little older, my dream was to come to Italy to become a defender. If you want to improve as a defender, Italy is the best place to do it. They teach defending in the best way. Right now, I’m here in Udine, and I have a lot to improve on, and Udinese is a great place to improve as a player. There’s no rush, but I still have a dream of playing in England one day.”
Zach Lowy is a freelance football journalist who has written for leading outlets like FotMob, BetUS, Apuestas Deportivas, and who has appeared as a radio and television guest for BBC, SiriusXMFC, and various other platforms. After pursuing a global sports journalism degree at George Washington University, Zach has been able to tap into his multilingual background and interview major footballing figures in Spanish and Portuguese as well as operate the weekly podcast 'Zach Lowy's European Football Show' on BET Central.
