German winger Leroy Sane has paid tribute to Manchester City teammates Ilkay Gundogan and Benjamin Mendy for helping him get through his six-month injury spell.
Sane, 24, has not played since damaging the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during City's Community Shield match against Liverpool at the start of August. Gundogan and Mendy have both experienced similar injuries in the past, and Sane said their advice has been invaluable during the long process back to fitness.
“The whole team supported me, of course,” Sane told the Manchester City website. “But I was especially talking to Gundogan and Mendy a little bit more about the injury, what they did, what could happen and their experience with everything.
“It helped me a lot to know how certain stuff feels and what can happen. It helped me and I’m very pleased that they pushed me along with that.”
Sane made his return to action in an Elite Development Squad game last month having missed 44 first-team games, the most amount of matches he has ever missed during his career. While receiving the news of the severity of the injury was tough to take, Sane insists it has also given him the opportunity to work on other parts of his game.
“It was the hardest and longest injury that I’ve ever had in my career,” he said. “It is difficult. Especially the first day after the surgery because you can’t move at all and that’s not something any of us athletes are used to.
“You have to push yourself every day because you know it’s a long rehab, but it is a good opportunity to work more on other weaknesses and that’s why I took it as a chance to recover well and come back strong.”
When Sane will be able to return to first-team duties remains unclear at present, with the Premier League suspended until at least April 4 as the United Kingdom and the rest of the world attempts to combat the coronavirus pandemic.
Indeed, the Premier League will convene on Thursday to discuss how to complete the rest of the season, and as Richard Jolly writes, there are tough decisions awaiting those in charge.
