Mikhail Antonio swore to return to high -ranking football when he continues to recover from the terrible car accident of December, which has taken him with a serious pause.
Antonio, who later turned 35 this month, had to be taken to the hospital after the cruel crash, who had taken him to the hospital over Christmas before he was released to continue his recovery. It is not surprising that he will not return to West Ham United this season.
Sit with BBC Sport For the first interview since the accident, Antonio admitted that he was determined not to say goodbye to his career.
“I smashed my femoral bone in four different places,” he said. “I had a single keyhole surgery. They stuck a pole with four screws in my thigh, i.e. screws and screws to knit it together again.
“My first surgeon said he didn’t want me to put a weight on my leg for three months and you can see that I go. We have a second specialist who said I had to start to lose weight and increase from 10% to 100% within three weeks.
“But I kept my crutches for two weeks. Overall, they say that it will take between six and 12 months for my leg to heal properly.
“100%. I will play again. I concentrate on that and why I work six days a week. I was always positive of this situation. It is a terrible accident and it is a massive injury.
“It is the greatest injury I have ever had in my career. But the fact that I am already two to three months ahead of me where I should be, I know that I will play again and I know that as soon as I play the game, the sharpness will get back.
“I was one of the fastest in West Ham. So my body was not the body of a 34-year-old before I had the accident. I can still be sharp and still do the business.
“People always have doubt about me. My mental strength is something I always believed in, and this is just another setback, and it won’t stop me.”
When Antonio thought about the severity of the accident, he admitted only the full extent when he was taken to see what remained of his car for weeks.
“My leg was completely broken and they got me out and put a rail on the side of the car,” continued Antonio.
“Everyone thought I got a flight car, but the helicopter couldn’t go into the ground because of the storm, so I was driven to the hospital.
“[Seeing the wreckage] gave me a strange feeling in my stomach. It only made it clear to me how close I died. I had seen the pictures, but it was worse ten times personally. The car was an absolute chaos. It was difficult for me. “