Leipzig's Henrichs with a big goal: a regular at the World Cup

Benjamin Henrichs of Bundesliga club RB Leipzig, who has been injured for eleven months, is still hoping to take part in next year's World Cup. "My big goal is not just to be at the World Cup, I want to be there as a regular player. I want to be there and really play and I'll give it my all," said the 28-year-old defender in the 58th episode of 360Media's "Spielmacher" podcast. Henrichs tore his right Achilles heel on December 20, 2024 without any intervention from the opponent.

However, the 19-time international did not set himself a specific date for his comeback after previously putting himself under pressure. He wanted to be back on the pitch after five months. Despite the pain, the Bocholt native pursued his goal, so another operation followed. "I turned my back on having a fixed plan. I'm just stepping on the gas and not setting myself a date, I just want to get fit," Henrichs now says.

Lots of encouragement from Kimmich and Tah

During his time of suffering, Henrichs also received a lot of encouragement, and not just from his teammates. National team captain Joshua Kimmich enquired about his condition almost every two weeks. "Even Jonah, my big brother," as Henrichs calls Jonathan Tah, a teammate from their time together at Leverkusen. Nevertheless, it is "not so easy to stay positive all the time, especially when there are setbacks".

He himself got in touch immediately after Leverkusen's Martin Terrier suffered the same injury a month after Henrichs. "I had never had any contact with him before. We only played against each other, but otherwise never spoke much," says Henrichs, "but that was the moment for me when I told him if you needed anything, I'd be there, and we then updated each other on a weekly basis."

A kind of new arrival

While Terrier is back on the pitch, Henrichs is eagerly awaiting his comeback for Leipzig. In view of the upheaval last summer with a new coaching team and many new players, the defender also sees himself as a kind of new arrival and is looking forward to the time of his return: "It's really like a child who hasn't been allowed to play for a very, very long time and now just wants to play soccer again."