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Emil Krafth reflects on his Magpies career in pictures
- Story by
- Emil Krafth reflects on his Magpies career in pictures
Emil Krafth reflects on his Magpies career in pictures
"I was very happy and super excited to sign for Newcastle . It had always been a dream of mine to play in the Premier League and, when Newcastle came, I didn't hesitate at all.
"I've been here for seven years now and if I could stay for seven more years, I would do it!"
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" Tottenham away! This was my first win with Newcastle. I remember we had a tough start to the season after we lost the first two games against Arsenal and Norwich.
"My memory of the game itself is not the best but it is an awesome picture with me and Fabi, who I have spent a lot of time with. I'm celebrating in front of the away fans there and it means everything for us, having them there supporting us and singing the songs.
"To be able to celebrate with them after a game was always something fantastic but they sacrifice a lot, spending a lot of money to travel and spending their time to watch us. If we can give something back, that's great."
"This is from my home debut [against Leicester City in the Carabao Cup]. It meant a lot to play at St. James' Park. It's goosebumps everytime you walk out there and being able to do that for seven years is quite rare.
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"Your home debut is always something special that you're always going to remember. I'm going to miss that place a lot."
"Was this when we scored twice in the last minute? Florian scored both against Everton and it was a crazy game!
"It showed our mentality and that feeling of it never being over until it's over. We really showed that in this game and, even though we didn't win, it felt like a victory because of scoring so late.
"When Florian hit the ball, the goalkeeper saved it and I was on the rebound, trying to tap it in. I should've scored but thankfully it had already crossed the line. It was a brilliant ending!
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"The COVID season was so weird. To have no supporters in the stadium made it feel like a friendly game even though it wasn't.
"It's hard to explain when you're out on the pitch because, normally, you can't speak to players because it's too loud and it was really quiet.
"It was surreal but I think everyone would say it was a strange season with no crowds and it shows how much they mean to footballers as well."
"My first goal for Newcastle [against Manchester City during the 2020/21 season]. It's funny because nobody had ever seen me as a good header of the ball. This was one of the first times I went up for a corner and I managed to score!
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"I tried doing it for the next couple of games after that but they pulled me back to the last man. As a defender, you don't have many chances to score, if it's not set pieces, and if you're not up there, it's even harder.
"I'm very happy that I scored at least one goal during my seven seasons at the club. It would've been even better if it was in front of a full stadium but it's always something I'm going to remember forever."
"This was a tough season but when Tripps and Bruno signed, we changed a lot and you also had Eddie joining. It was all about survival that year - to have something to build on.
"In the second half of the season, we showed real mentality and that it shouldn't be easy to come to St. James' Park and beat us.
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"For the future of the club, I think it meant a lot to stay up and there were some big games I played in after Tripps got injured and we got the points we needed to survive. That was vital."
"Eddie helped me improve my game a lot. Many players will say the same but he changed my game and my confidence too.
"He saw what I was good at and what I needed to work on. He has been amazing for Newcastle since he stepped through the door. He's a really hard worker. He is the first person at the training ground in the morning and will be the last one to leave.
"He meant a lot to me during my four seasons I had with him. I hope he can take Newcastle even further."
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"I got the nickname 'Krafu' around this time. It's great to have that. I have a couple of others within the squad but I think this is the best one.
"It's an awesome feeling to have someone call you that. It means so much."
"This is my injury against Tranmere Rovers [in the Carabao Cup]. That was a punch to the face! When it happened, it was very painful but I didn't really know what it is because I never suffered a big injury before.
"I was thinking the worst and it killed my rhythm, especially after coming into a new season off the back of a really positive one.
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"I think I was out for around 14 months. I had a few setbacks during that time but the team, staff and fans have always helped me a lot, especially mentally because it's tough to go through.
"They've been there for me and the family, trying to help me to survive because when you have an injury like that, you're thinking 'am I going ever going to be able to play football again?'
"I worked really hard through it and got back 14 months later."
"Coming back from the injury was an incredible feeling. This was one of the first games I'd played as a centre-half so that was something new to me, playing with Dummy [ Paul Dummett ] at the back.
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"We had a fantastic game, winning 3-0 at Old Trafford to go through in the Carabao Cup, and I was close to scoring which would have capped it off.
"It was a very emotional game for myself, knowing I had fully healed and was able to tolerate the intensity again and everything that comes with it. It was a result of hard work paying off."
"This was one of the best moments in my career because it meant so much for everyone. We lost the cup final two seasons before and we knew we didn't want to lose again.
"We had a fantastic game. I came on for the final minutes, trying to see the game out, and it was crazy when the full-time whistle was blown.
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"Going up the steps to the Royal Box and lifting the trophy is something you'll remember for the rest of your life."
"The trophy parade was amazing. I didn't know there was so many people living in Newcastle. The streets were full of people and I didn't expect that at all.
"It was an awesome day both for myself and everyone connected with the club. Being able to celebrate on the Town Moor with the fans, as we did at Wembley, meant a lot and I hope we can do it again very soon."
Everyone would like to thank Emil for his tremendous service to the club and wish him the best of luck for the future.
