Christensen began his career atSkjold Birkerød and later joinedBrøndby. He joined Chelsea at the age of 15 in February 2012, making his professional debut in October 2014. After a two-year loan to German clubBorussia Mönchengladbach, he returned to Chelsea in 2017, winning theFA Cup,UEFA Europa League andUEFA Champions League with the club. In 2022, he was signed by Barcelona, where he wonLa Liga in his debut season.
On 7 February 2012, Christensen signed for Chelsea on a free transfer, near the end ofAndré Villas-Boas' tenure as the club's manager. Upon joining the London side, Christensen said: "I have chosen Chelsea because they play the kind of football I like."[5][6]
Christensen was first included in a Chelsea senior squad for their last game of the2012–13 season on 19 May 2013, but did not feature in the match, which ended a 2–1 home win overEverton inRafael Benítez's last match as manager.[7] In the pre-season tour of the United States before the2013–14 season, he was part of the senior team squad and signed a professional contract thereafter.[8]
He made his professional debut on 28 October 2014,[9] playing 79 minutes at right-back as Chelsea won 2–1 away toShrewsbury Town in the fourth round of theLeague Cup.[10] Christensen did not play again until 24 January 2015, when he was utilised in the same position for Chelsea's4–2 home defeat toLeague One teamBradford City in theFA Cup fourth round.[11]
Although Christensen played no further part in the campaign, Chelsea won the League Cup with a 2–0 victory overrival clubTottenham Hotspur inthe final. When asked who wasman of the match for the final, managerJosé Mourinho said, "Man of the match was Andreas Christensen who played well against Shrewsbury. There are more thanJohn Terry (the official Man of the match for the final) because we are a team. I am proud of the guys."[12]
On 13 April 2015, Christensen played for Chelsea U19 in the final of the 2014–15UEFA Youth League againstShakhtar Donetsk in Switzerland and although he scored an own goal to cancel outIzzy Brown's opener in the first half, Chelsea still ended with a 3–2 victory.[13] He made hisPremier League debut againstSunderland on 24 May, replacingMikel John Obi with 12 minutes remaining in a 3–1 home victory.[14] Although Christensen only made one league appearances out of the whole season, Mourinho stated that he would receive a replica medal from his club for his contributions this season.[15]
After an impressive debut season, Christensen was voted the team's Player of the Season, ahead ofGranit Xhaka, the teamcaptain.[21] After the success of his first season, Mönchengladbach made multiple attempts to make his loan permanent during the2016 summer transfer window, although it was reported that Chelsea rejected the £14.25 million bid from the German club.[22] In the2016–17 UEFA Europa League, Christensen scored the final goal of a 4–2 win away toFiorentina in the second leg of the last 32 to assure a 4–3 aggregate win.[23] He was on target again in the next round against neighboursSchalke, who won on away goals after a 3–3 aggregate draw.[24]
On 12 August 2017, Christensen made his first appearance for Chelsea following his two-year loan spell in Germany, coming off the bench following captainGary Cahill being sent off, in Chelsea's 3–2 opening day home defeat againstBurnley.[25] Eight days later, he made his first Premier League start in a 2–1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur atWembley Stadium.[26] On 9 January 2018, Christensen signed a new four-and-a-half-year deal with Chelsea running until 2022, after establishing himself in the first team.[27] Christensen made 40 appearances for the Blues in 2017–18, including three in the victoriousFA Cup campaign. However, a back injury meant he was not involved in the final.[28] Prior to the season's finish, he was awarded the club'sYoung Player of the Year award.[29] New managerMaurizio Sarri preferred to pairDavid Luiz andAntonio Rüdiger in central defence, and by February 2019 Christensen had made 15 appearances, only two of which in the league. However, he ruled out wanting to leave the club.[30]
On 4 July 2022, Christensen signed forLa Liga clubBarcelona in afree transfer on a four-year contract with a buyout clause of €500 million.[33][34][35] On 13 August, he made his debut in 0–0 draw againstRayo Vallecano in the league.[36] He began playing more consistently as the season progressed, and eventually formed a defensive partnership alongsideRonald Araújo, helping Barcelona keep the most clean sheets (16) in all of Europe's top 5 leagues.[37][38] He was namedDanish Football Player of the Year for 2023, having won theLa Liga title and theSupercopa de España with his club.[39] Following poor performances from teammateOriol Romeu and poor general defensive performances, culminating in narrow wins and a shock 3–5 home defeat toVillarreal,Xavi moved Christensen todefensive midfielder, which managed to improve Barcelona's form, including emphatic victories againstNapoli in the Champions League and rivalsAtlético Madrid.
On 10 April 2024, he scored his first Champions League goal with Barcelona,[40] after coming off the bench in the second half, which granted his club a 3–2 away win againstParis Saint-Germain in thequarter-final first leg.[41]
On 21 December 2025, it was announced Christensen had suffered a partialAnterior cruciate ligament tear during training and would be out for several months.[42]
On 8 June 2015, Christensen made his senior international debut forDenmark in a 2–1 home friendly win againstMontenegro at theViborg Stadium, as a 69th-minute substitute forPierre-Emile Højbjerg.[43] On 24 March 2016, Christensen made his first Denmark start in a 2–1 victory overIceland, playing the full 90 minutes of the friendly at theMCH Arena.[44]
Christensen played six matches in Denmark's successful2018 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign. On 14 November 2017 he scored his first international goal to equalise in a 5–1 win over theRepublic of Ireland in the second leg of the play-off.[45] ManagerÅge Hareide called him up for thefinal tournament in Russia.[46] He partneredSimon Kjær in central defence, having been able to play in that position due toAndreas Bjelland's absence through injury, but played in defensive midfield in the final group game againstFrance.[47] In the last 16 againstCroatia, he remained in midfield to combat the opponents' strength in that sector, but made an error that allowedMario Mandžukić to equalise as Croatia went on to win on penalties.[48]
Christensen was one of the key players for Denmark during their very successfulUEFA Euro 2020 campaign, as he played all six games.[49][50] On 21 June 2021, Christensen scored a thunderous goal from long range againstRussia in a 4–1 win that helped Denmark advance to the knockout-phase of the tournament.[51] After having defeated bothWales and theCzech Republic to get there, Denmark lost toEngland in the semi-final 2–1 after extra time at Wembley Stadium.[52]
In November 2022, Christensen was selected in Denmark's squad for the2022 FIFA World Cup. He started all three of the team's matches in Qatar, scoring in the 2–1 loss to France in their secondGroup D fixture.[53]
Christensen is acentre-back and is known for his calmness in possession and precise passing, as well as his aerial dominance. In 2018, Chelsea managerAntonio Conte said the Dane had displayed "great maturity" adding that he has "a lot of trust in Christensen. This player is a player for the present for Chelsea, and for Chelsea's future for 10 or 14 years. He can also become the captain of this team in the future".[55] In appreciation of his playing talents, fans have also labelled him as the 'Danish Maldini',[56] drawing comparisons with the Italian defenderPaolo Maldini.[citation needed]
^Olsen, Allan (8 June 2015)."Pierre-Emile er vores panzerwagen!" [Pierre-Emile is our tank!].Ekstra Bladet (in Danish). Copenhagen. Retrieved8 June 2015.
