Andreas Christensen popped up as the surprising difference maker to power Barcelona’s 3-2 win over Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League quarter-final.
He didn’t even start the game but made an instant impact after coming on as a substitute. Christensen scored the winning goal with a clever header two minutes after he entered the pitch.
Christensen joined a coveted class of players to have scored winning goals in Champions League knockout games on their birthday. Indeed, the Danish centre-back celebrated his 28th birthday on Wednesday (April 10). In doing so, he became only the fifth player in Champions League history to score a goal in the knockout stages on their birthdays – following the likes of Edinson Cavani and Simone Inzaghi.
The Barcelona centre-back was overjoyed with his contribution and celebrated his heroics with his partner, Katrine Fogt Friis, after the game.
Friis had travelled to the game along with Sara Gundogan and Mikky Kiemeney – the wives of Ilkay Gundogan and Frenkie de Jong. After full-time, she shared a sweet moment with Andreas at the Parc des Princes and gave him a kiss for his brilliant performance too.
Andreas has been together with Friis since 2016, with the two meeting when he was still on loan at Borussia Monchengladbach at that time. Their love blossomed after that point and Katrine decided to move to England with Christensen after he was recalled by Chelsea in 2017 after the end of his loan spell.
Friis is a former Danish model who has worked as a model for various swimwear brands in her career. But she has been happy to stay close to Andreas ever since meeting him and spent five years in London with him during his time at Chelsea. She also took some time to get her undergraduate degree secured from the University of London – getting a degree in the Media & Communications subject from Goldsmiths College.
Katrine is known for being a bit of a shopaholic and loved shopping at places like Harrods, Liberty and Cartier. She actually got herself quite accustomed to life in London and was often seen taking the local transport like the London Tube to move around. That is why she penned an emotional note on having to leave London when he left Chelsea to join Barcelona in 2022.
Later that year, Christensen also got engaged to Friis to further strengthen their relationship as they ventured into a different chapter in their lives. Friis is also a highly devoted supporter of her partner’s performances on the pitch and is often seen travelling to stadiums to cheer him on.
Friis currently has over 80,000 followers on her Instagram account – where she mostly posts pictures of her travelling to new places or modelling fashionable outfits. She also shares two children with Andreas named Alba and Madison, with their second child being born only a few days before Christmas Eve last year.
Friis is also good friends with some of the partners of other Barcelona players, having travelled with Sara Gundogan and Mikky Kiemeney to the PSG game and even dined together at the famous ‘Loulou’ restaurant.
Normally, she isn’t really seen in public that often with Andreas apart from if they are vacationing or attending some gala or award events together. Christensen, being a private and pretty shy person in general, hasn’t really delved into their relationship much in interviews.
But it’s quite clear knowing their long-standing relationship that the couple are very happy. Friis has no problem taking care of the family and being a strong pillar to keep her husband motivated and strong enough to perform at the hugely demanding environment at Barcelona.
