Eintracht Frankfurt have extended Makoto Hasebe’s contract, which was due to expire at the end of the season, by five more years. Hasebe, who will be 39 at the end of the 2022/23 campaign, will spend one more year as a player before taking on a coaching role.
If all goes to plan, Hasebe will have spent nine years with the Eagles by the time his playing career comes to an end. The 114-time Japan international has made 256 appearances for Eintracht since joining the club from 1. FC Nürnberg in 2014 – more than any other player in the current squad.
So far this season, the defender has showcased his remarkable ability in 19 appearances across the Bundesliga, UEFA Europa League and DFB Cup. His special status is also reflected in the decision to name him vice-captain at the start of the campaign.
A model professional, Hasebe has also been looking in greater depth into possible career paths once his playing days are over. He has been taking part in the German Football Association’s ‘Players Pathway’ pilot project, which helps players who have recently hung up their boots or are reaching the end of their careers to explore potential job opportunities in good time.
Frankfurt has become my home in recent years and Eintracht are my club.
Makoto Hasebe
“Makoto Hasebe is a player who any professional club could only wish for,” said board member for sport Markus Krösche. “Despite his age, his abilities on the pitch meet the high standards of the Bundesliga. Personality-wise, he plays an important role for our youngsters in particular. Makoto is a strategist and a calming influence in our team, and his character is impeccable. It’s important to us that Makoto remains an example, an important point of contact and a role model for the long haul, and that we can give him his first taste of being part of a first-team coaching set-up.”
Hasebe, who is also an Eintracht brand ambassador, is looking forward to the coming years with great excitement. “Frankfurt has become my home in recent years and Eintracht are my club,” he said. “We’ve achieved a lot together in the last eight years and I’m delighted that our journey is set to continue. I still feel fit and able to play football at a high level. Eintracht are also giving me the opportunity to take my first steps as a top-level coach, which I’m very grateful for.”
