Ghana international Daniel-Kofi Kyereh is set to bring an end to his four-year spell in Breisgau, a period shaped more by recovery setbacks than consistent action on the pitch. However, his recent return to form with Freiburg’s U23 side has provided encouragement ahead of the next stage of his career.

SC Freiburg have confirmed that Kyereh will leave the club at the conclusion of the 2025/26 season.

The Bundesliga side decided not to activate the option included in the midfielder’s contract, meaning the 30-year-old will depart the Europa-Park Stadion as a free agent this summer.

Speaking during a farewell event attended by more than 8,000 supporters, the Ghanaian expressed his gratitude to the club for the backing he received throughout his time there.

“Even so, I’m happy with my time in Freiburg. The team always stood by me, and recently I was really touched by the way the U23 players welcomed me,” Kyereh said.

Freiburg paid €4.5 million to sign Daniel-Kofi Kyereh from FC St. Pauli in the summer of 2022 after an outstanding campaign in which he scored 13 goals and registered 11 assists in 32 appearances.

Born in Cologne to Ghanaian parents and raised in Germany, Kyereh arrived in Breisgau regarded as one of the country’s most exciting attacking midfielders.

His impressive form at St. Pauli earned him a first senior call-up to the Ghana national team, and he quickly adapted to Bundesliga football. He made his Freiburg debut as a substitute in a 4-1 home victory over Union Berlin on 6 August 2022.

Kyereh’s encouraging start continued when he scored his first Bundesliga goal in a 2-1 win against Mainz 05 on 1 October 2022. Five days later, he netted his first Europa League goal in a 2-0 group-stage victory over Nantes.

Those performances secured his place in Ghana’s squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, where he earned his 18th international cap and represented the Black Stars on football’s biggest stage.

His last appearance for Ghana came against Uruguay on 2 December 2022 at the World Cup. At the time, few could have imagined it would become his final international outing, or that the following three-and-a-half years of his career would largely revolve around injury setbacks and rehabilitation.

Everything changed on 9 February 2023, when Kyereh suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament during a Freiburg training session.

It was the second ACL injury of his career, having previously suffered the same setback at the age of 19 while playing for TSV Havelse.

Freiburg later confirmed that Kyereh continued his rehabilitation work in Barcelona, with then-head coach Christian Streich comparing the recovery process to climbing a staircase — progressing step by step while also dealing with setbacks along the way.

The injury ruled him out for the remainder of the 2022/23 season, Ghana’s 2023 Africa Cup of Nations campaign in Côte d’Ivoire, and Freiburg’s Europa League run.

Kyereh returned to first-team training in July 2024 after spending 20 months away from competitive football.

However, during Freiburg’s pre-season camp in Schruns, fresh problems emerged in the injured knee following increased workload, prompting the club to confirm that another surgical procedure would be necessary to determine the next stage of treatment.

The setback, confirmed in July 2024, effectively forced Kyereh to begin the recovery process all over again — undergoing a second operation, another lengthy rehabilitation programme, and facing an uncertain timeline for his return.

In total, the Ghana international spent close to 975 days sidelined throughout the ordeal, making it one of the longest and most difficult injury absences involving a Ghanaian footballer in recent years.

There has finally been positive news, though, as Kyereh has now returned to competitive action. His comeback appearance for Freiburg’s U23 side in the Regionalliga Südwest marked an emotional moment for the 30-year-old. Head coach Julian Schuster revealed that the midfielder had been training with the team for some time before being gradually reintroduced to match action.

Since April, Kyereh has scored two goals and registered two assists in seven appearances for the U23s, including a standout display with a goal and an assist in a 4-0 win over Mainz 05’s reserve team

Despite his prolonged injury struggles, Kyereh still has 18 appearances for Ghana and has openly stated his ambition to represent the Black Stars at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America.

His encouraging performances for Freiburg’s U23 side are now expected to attract attention from several clubs across Europe ahead of the summer transfer window.

Former Freiburg coach Christian Streich once described Kyereh as “a player who makes football joyful,” and that reputation has not disappeared. The focus now turns to which club will offer him the opportunity to rediscover that spark consistently at senior level once again.