Robbie Kruse’s journey to the Asian Cup has been long and painful but the Australia striker is finally ready to put his annus horribilis firmly behind him

As the first snowflakes of winter fall down on Leverkusen, Robbie Kruse is out in minus two conditions practicing his shooting. Training for the day is over, but the Socceroos star is just starting to get his groove on. This month, however, he’s swapping the gloves and long sleeves for shorts and a T-shirt, soaking up the Australian summer sun on skin that has long turned a pasty white.

The Bundesliga has taken its annual winter break, but unlike his Leverkusen team-mates, this is no holiday. Kruse has unfinished business, he’s on a mission to right the wrongs of a horror 2014.

“You never get used to these winters,” Kruse says in the warmth and safety of Bayer Leverkusen’s state-of-the-art stadium back in December. “Today’s freezing here. I can’t wait for some sun, I need it bad.” The cold doesn’t help the 26-year-old’s warm-up either, his left peg needing a bit more coaxing to get moving when the temperature creeps below zero. The scars are still evident on Kruse’s knee, a constant reminder of the forward’s year from hell.

Twelve months ago, Kruse was on the cusp of a very special year. He was within a whisker of breaking into Bayer Leverkusen’s star-studded Champions League first XI, had cemented himself as the Socceroos’ most influential player and was about to experience the pinnacle moment of his career – a World Cup in Brazil. The Socceroos were in a mode of transition after the introduction of manager Ange Postecoglou and Kruse was expected to help lead a young squad into an exciting new era.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Kruse signs autographs at a Socceroos training session in a sunny Collingwood. Photograph: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

Yet the dream script ran out of space, taking a sinister turn as the glowing superlatives faded from the page and a dark winter’s day took centre stage. “I was in training, it was the last action of the session and I wasn’t even supposed to be involved,” Kruse recalls. “It was a bit of a muck around and I wanted to go up against one of my close friends.”

A sudden turn, a sharp burst of pain and Kruse hit the deck clutching his left knee. Innocuous at first, the 26-year-old’s worst nightmare was confirmed when the diagnosis came back the next day – a torn ACL. The prognosis was a minimum of six months on the treatment table, which extinguished any hopes of a trip to Brazil. While his team-mates were facing off against the likes of Alexis Sánchez, Arjen Robben and Andrés Iniesta, Kruse was locked inside a gym, working to get his career back on track.

The Socceroos’ promising performances therefore evoked “bittersweet” feelings from Kruse – proud of the boys, but devastated to be missing out. What should have been his World Cup, however, has now turned into his Asian Cup. Winning the tournament is a minimum requirement for Kruse, something he constantly reiterates.

And although first team football has been tough to find this season at the BayArena - a tough ask considering he’s competing with Karim Bellarabi, Hakan Çalhanoğlu, Son Heung-min and Stefan Kiessling – Kruse says he’s never felt physically or mentally stronger. “For me personally it’s been good and bad,” Kruse says of the first half of the season. “I’ve recovered well from my injury and I’m feeling really good. Obviously I’d like more game time but we have some great players here.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest “I want to do really well and try to right the wrongs of not being able to go to the World Cup.” Photograph: Joe Castro/AAP Image

An exuberant Leverkusen team-mate interrupts Kruse mid-flow, whooping out to him as he enters the building in flashy sneakers and a black hoodie, lightening up the room. It’s Son, the South Korean dynamo who will be taking on Kruse and the Socceroos in Group A of the Asian Cup. “It’s going to be difficult, I’m very close friends with Sonny so I know the kind of pressure we’re going to be under,” Kruse continues. “He’s a massively established player. It shows how difficult it’s going to be.”

Recent performances from the Socceroos haven’t been too inspiring but Kruse believes the team is in “good hands”. He’s enjoying Postecoglou’s system, likening it to what many teams have adopted in the Bundesliga. “Here at Leverkusen we love to press a lot and I think that’s the way we’re going with the national team,” he says. “It’s great to play in, it’s very difficult but there’s a lot of freedom, a lot of rotation and I think it’s really exciting.”

The journey in Germany started bleakly for Kruse, however, when he first secured a move to second division side Fortuna Düsseldorf in 2011. Without the support of family and friends, and unable to get into the first team, Kruse was contemplating a move back home. Fortuna were promoted, and the then 23-year-old’s hopes sank even further.

“I thought if I can’t play in the second league, what chance do I have when we go to the first league,” Kruse says. “I wasn’t quite into it and wasn’t quite ready. I think we recruited about 17 new players … but thankfully I stuck it out.

Not only did he stick it out, he exploded. While Fortuna were ultimately relegated in their solitary Bundesliga season, Kruse was a revelation, starting in all bar five matches, scoring four goals and laying on nine assists. The lucrative transfer to Leverkusen followed in 2013.

While Socceroos legend Ned Zelić was the man to break through the German system in the 1990s, there’s little doubt Robbie Kruse is the modern day trailblazer. His success has paved the way for others such as Mustafa Amini, Ben Halloran and Mathew Leckie to secure playing time in Germany.

“It’s very difficult for Australian players to come to Europe and establish themselves,” Kruse explains. “I think sometimes in Australia people underestimate how difficult it is move to a new country at a pretty young age.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Much is expected from Kruse at this month’s tournament. Photograph: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

“But it’s about going to the right clubs in the right environment. I think [Germany’s second division] is a wonderful stepping stone. With all due credit to the A-League it just doesn’t compare to here, to life in Europe. [A-League clubs] would struggle in the second league here.”

While talking about pathways for Australian players and the struggle to wrestle their way into Europe, Kruse speaks glowingly of the next batch of youngsters. Joining the chorus of support for Western Sydney Wanderers striker Tomi Juric, Kruse has also been impressed with the Olyroos, who were recently involved in a tournament alongside the Under-23s of Brazil, China and South Korea.

“A player on our team [Wendell] plays for the Brazil Under-23s,” Kruse says. “He played against the Olyroos when it was 2-2, so I’ve been bragging about it because they thought it was going to be a walk in the park. It’s a great thing for us, I think we’ll always produce good players.

Kruse is yet to contemplate his future, which may lie away from Leverkusen if he can’t break into the first team. Coach Roger Schmidt is reluctant to send him out on loan though, a clear sign he’s firmly in the mix. “I’m at a massive club and I’m playing with the best players in the world. It’s such an intense environment, it’s something that I love. These experiences, they’re hard to buy.”

Bayer Leverkusen played their last match before the winter break on December 20, and Kruse has since been spending the last week or so with family and soaking up those much-needed rays in Brisbane. But the brief respite is over, now it’s time to put behind the demons of 2014 and start the New Year with a bang. Asian Cup glory awaits.

“It’s going to be a really big tournament for the country, and even more personally for me I want to do really well and try to right the wrongs of not being able to go to the World Cup,” Kruse says.

At the very least, Kruse will go home with a new, bronzed look. But he hopes to also take back ammunition to convince Leverkusen he’s worthy of a starring role, as well as a shiny winner’s medal.