Kitchee star Jakob Jantscher on finding refuge in football after dad’s suicide, craving glory and ‘special’ Hojlund
- Star Kitchee recruit Jantscher found refuge in football following his father’s suicide in October 2011
- Austrian swapped homeland for Hong Kong in summer and wants to keep club’s AFC Champions League campaign alive
Jakob Jantscher circled the pitch at Sturm Graz’s Merkur Arena and received the ear-splitting acclaim of thousands of supporters, gathered in August to bid farewell to the man they called ‘The King of Graz’.
“I saw on the tribune guys I had known for 15, 16 years, and the ultras: hard guys, hooligan guys, getting very emotional,” Jantscher, Kitchee’s blue-riband summer signing, beamed.
“They see you as a friend, someone who did big things for the club. My mum was crying with happiness, she was so proud. I wish my dad had been there to see it.”
Jantscher’s father, Harald, took his own life in October 2011. The gifted forward was 22 and lighting up Austrian football with RB Salzburg.
While he “does not have any answers about what happened” on that day 12 years ago, Jantscher feared something was wrong because he could not contact his father on the telephone.
“If I had any decision to make, I would call my dad,” Jantscher said. “He was the person who knew me best. It was a very difficult time, especially with how it happened.