Rasmus Kristensen has loved his time as a Leeds United player so far as he continues to settle into life with the Whites. Kristensen made the move to Elland Road at the start of the summer from Red Bull Salzburg and linked up with the squad earlier this month, in time to take part in their pre-season tour of Australia.
In truth, he has been one of the club’s most impressive performers on the trip so far, too, earning praise for his displays against Brisbane Roar and Aston Villa in Queensland. The right-back only had 45 minutes on the field against the A-League side in Gold Coast, but that was enough to underline his quality, despite it being his first outing since representing Denmark against Austria in June.
Kristensen had a longer stint on the field at the Suncorp Stadium against Premier League opposition and was arguably the club’s best outfield player. He’ll hope to continue that progression this week when Jesse Marsch’s side take on Crystal Palace at the Optus Stadium in Perth, but as the start of the Premier League season edges closer, the 25-year-old insists he is in a very good place.
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“I think so far, so good,” Kristensen said when asked how he’s settled in under Marsch. “It’s been a tough first two weeks but good two weeks as part of pre-season, getting fitness.
“I came here a little bit later than the first group because of the national team but I’ve had a good start and a warm welcome, a great group of guys. Everything I was told and promised before I signed, it’s living up to it and more, so I’m happy.
“It’s really everything altogether, the fans, the guys in the locker room, the coaches, the culture around the club and then even the guys working around the first-team. No one mentioned, no one forgotten, but I would say I’m really happy that I made my choice to come here.
“There’s still some improvement. I’m almost there with fitness, it’s more just the timing in games, the touches, the passes, the tactics and mechanisms of the game that we need to get back into full rhythm. There’s still some way to go but that’s why we have a pre-season.”
Kristensen has got to know his new teammates well over the course of United’s pre-season tour Down Under, but it’s fair to say he already knew one face very well. Kristensen spent two years playing alongside Brenden Aaronson in Austria and he is more than aware of what the United States international can bring to Elland Road.
“As you’ve seen in the game, he’s able to play in really tight spaces and he has an incredible touch and technique,” he added about Aaronson. “He has a really good feeling about what’s going on around him and then he’s able to make the last pass or make the last action to score the goal.
“He will definitely bring some of his creativity and I feel like Brenden is not the biggest guy, but he’s one of the toughest that I know. He’s not afraid of anything and he runs his a--- off every game. I think that’s one of his qualities, he’s an offensive technical player but he has that working hard mentality, it’s really appreciated.”
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