Memories from His Youth and the Kronborg Cup
Although his soccer career today involves large stadiums and top-level matches in Germany and with the national team, Jacob still remembers, 11 years later, his participation in the Kronborg Cup as a truly fond memory—along with a teammate who would later also go on to become a national team player;

"I clearly remember a free-kick goal I scored against Espergærde on one of the fields at Helsingør Hallen. Even though I experience a lot of things as a professional soccer player, I can still remember things like that from back then. For example, I played here against Frederik Roepstorff (later an FC Helsingør player, ed.). It was a lot of fun. We had a really good team back then; we were great at counterattacks thanks to my speed and Victor Nelsson, who would play deep passes. It worked really well.”

Jacob has fond memories of his time as a youth player, and, according to Jacob, it was a very special time—one he sometimes misses—when it was all about having fun;

“I miss it like crazy, I have to admit. Back then, you didn’t think too much about things—it was all about the camaraderie and having fun. I always took it seriously—sometimes even too seriously—but being with my best friends before and after games was amazing. It’s pure joy for the game, and you play because it’s fun. Of course, I still do that, but it’s just something completely different when you can take the bus or ride your bike with your friends to practice.”

His relationships with his friends, in particular, meant a lot to Jacob. Jacob still remembers the good times he had with his friends playing soccer and the truly unique sense of camaraderie among them, when everything revolved around soccer;

“You share a huge passion with your friends. It’s pretty unique, and of course you don’t experience it the same way as a pro these days. Amateur soccer has a lot of charm and camaraderie. You can get just as into it as a pro, but youth soccer just has something that pro soccer doesn’t—and vice versa. What I look back on and sometimes really miss is the camaraderie with my friends. It was all about my friends and soccer. That was the coolest part. Sunday was the worst day because there was no practice, so you’d just look forward to Monday for soccer and your friends. I always look back on my time as a youth player with a smile. It really means something.”

Photo: Personal photo.

As a youth player for Hornbæk IF, FC Nord, and Lyngby BK, Jacob himself took part in a number of youth tournaments, which he still misses to this day, as there was a very special atmosphere and a sense of camaraderie with his friends;

“It was just amazing. It was always so much fun to bring your air mattress and sleep over with friends. Eating that slightly stale breakfast with a loaf of bread that’s a little too white and cornflakes that are a little too soft. That really says something. It was fun. You were just there, and it was really fun to be there. That was the coolest part—because even when you weren’t playing soccer, you were still hanging out with your friends. That’s what you think of when you think of youth soccer—staying at a school with an air mattress that’s a little too flat, but it didn’t matter at all.”

Every young soccer player’s dream
Like all children on the soccer fields, Jacob lived with the dream of one day becoming a professional soccer player and making a living doing what he loved most—namely, soccer. Jacob was, however, well aware that very few make it through the eye of the needle to that life. Still, even at a young age, Jacob realized that there might be a chance in the future that he could succeed, since the people around him could clearly see that he had a special talent—but he never dared to hope that it would become such a big deal;

“It was definitely a dream, but back then, it was just about becoming a professional soccer player. I didn’t know how far I could take it—and I probably still don’t. Just becoming a pro was my goal. I also told my friends at school that I wanted to play for the national team one day. I still remember that when I played my first game for the national team, I texted my friends to ask if they remembered when I’d said that. I’ve always wanted to be a professional. I could tell that I was one of the best in my age group. People around me also told me that if I worked hard, I could go far and make it through the eye of the needle. But as a 10-year-old, I never would have imagined that I’d be where I am now. Just becoming a professional was the most important thing.”

Everyday Life as a Professional
Life as a professional soccer player is something many children and young people dream about and imagine becoming a part of in the future. A typical day at a Bundesliga club is similar in many ways to a regular workday, but then again, not quite;

“Every day is different. Usually, I drive to training at the training facility at 8:30 a.m. and have breakfast with the team. Then we have until 10:30 a.m. to get ready in the gym or for treatment. Then we have a meeting, and we head out onto the field from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., after which I go to the training center for treatment from the physical therapy staff. I probably won’t be done until around 4:00–5:00 p.m., at which point I drive home again.”

With several years in the Bundesliga and a handful of international matches under his belt, Jacob has, even at a young age, faced some of soccer’s biggest stars—from teams like Bayern Munich, Atlético Madrid, Liverpool, and FC Barcelona—but that hasn’t really affected his play; it’s just something you have to get used to for a little while;

“The first time you play against a big star, it might be a little different, but once you’ve done it more and more times, it’s just like any other game. You have a routine—you probably have one as a youth player, too—it’s just a slightly different routine now, but we still have the same plan for the day no matter who we’re playing against. Of course, I prepare for the player I’m going up against, but I don’t think about what he’s accomplished earlier in his career. I try to focus on the things I’m good at myself. It becomes second nature once you’re used to it, but the first few times, I did find myself thinking about it. But anything can happen, and you shouldn’t be afraid of anything—you just have to go for it.”

The Best Advice for Up-and-Coming Stars
If you dream of following in Jacob’s footsteps—making the leap from amateur to professional—Jacob has some good advice for up-and-coming stars: the most important thing is to stay true to yourself every step of the way;

“You have to remember to be yourself the whole way through and remember where you came from. You have to remember why you’ve gotten to where you are, be eager to learn, be open to feedback, and strive to improve in every detail. It’s important to have a winning mindset—you should always want to win. Your opponent shouldn’t have any excuses for why they lost, but at the same time, you must of course remember to be a good person. Then you’ll have a solid foundation.”

Photo: Fodboldbilleder.dk