Paderborn cut ties with Kruse

Thirty-five-year-old German striker Max Kruse is once again without a club after SC Paderborn 07 gave the journeyman his outright release yesterday. 

Max Kruse’s tenure with his eighth German footballing club lasted less than four months. Injuries limited the Lower Saxon journeyman to just four appearances (one start) with 2. Bundesliga side SC Paderborn 07. On Friday, the two sides announced that they would be partying company via the termination of a contract scheduled to run through the end of the current campaign. Kruse registered one assist with the East Westphalians.

“Both sides imagined the sporting development differently,” head-of-sport Benjamin Weber noted in a statement released by the club, “Max was on a very good path, but was slowed down by the injury. Because the current situation was unsatisfactory for us and for the player, we parted ways. During his time in Paderborn, Max always behaved in an exemplary manner. We wish him all the best for the future.”

“I hope the team and the club that can achieve their goals,” Kruse himself added in bidding farewell to the side currently occupying 12th-place in the second division table, “and wish everyone all the best for the future.”

Whether Kruse will once again lace up his boots in German football remains to be seen. The veteran’s penchant for being a vocal distraction – combined with his recent injury struggles – most likely means that no clubs in the Bundesrepublik will be interested in picking him up. A move abroad can nevertheless not be ruled out.

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