Karsdorp expired from his contract with PSV last season. There was some interest, but no deal was reached. His life now looks very different. Kylian, his six-year-old son, has autism. ‘Then you start thinking. What can I change or what can I do?’, Karsdorp said in conversation with ESPN. ‘You want the best for your children, they are everything. There are several things that have made me stop for now, but that certainly plays a role.’
His injury history also plays a role. Karsdorp, who started his career at Feyenoord and ended up at PSV via AS Roma, had to be operated on seven times. ‘Six or seven times, I don’t even remember. At a certain point you are no longer motivated. I’ve always had to fight back, then once it’s done, you can focus on other things. That’s basically it.’
Dolphin therapy
Karsdorp emphasizes that the book has not yet been definitively closed. ‘I won’t be playing football again until the summer anyway, because I have something planned with my son in March: dolphin therapy. Then you see what that does to your child… In the beginning he was afraid of everything, he didn’t want to, but then you see him laughing and swimming with those dolphins. That’s great for a father to see.’
