Jeremie Frimpong has admitted it took him a while to get used to the German Bundesliga after completing his transfer move to Bayer 04 Leverkusen.
The 20-year-old right-back moved from Celtic Glasgow to the Werkself in January 2021 for € 11 million. After a phase of adaptation, the Dutch U21 international is now under coach Gerardo Seoane, and in the 3-1 win in Leipzig he even scored his first Bundesliga goal.
“It took me a while to get used to the league. For me it was a big step,” Frimpong is quoted as saying by kicker on Wednesday.
“The biggest difference is that every game in the Bundesliga is difficult. You can also play against the last one here and they’ll give you a good game. You can never switch off.”
The attacking defender had to deal with the fact that the challenges at Bayer 04 are different from those at Celtic. “At Celtic we had the ball the whole time. We didn’t really have to defend. Only if we played against Glasgow Rangers, Hibernian or Aberdeen. ”The problems in defensive behavior initially made themselves felt at Frimpong.
“I’ve done things that I got away with at Celtic. But of course in Germany you play against much better opponents. Those were things you can’t do here, ”admitted the right footer. “I’ve adapted, I’ve learned all season. And I’m still learning. ”
In Leverkusen, as a regular player, Frimpong can hope for an early appearance in the “Elftal”. “I have to show what I can. I have to prove myself. Whoever plays for Leverkusen will also play for their national team, ”he concluded.
Frimpong’s contract with the German club expires in 2025.
