BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Axel Witsel, who recovered earlier than expected from a real Achilles tendon injury and has been hailed as Belgium's "miracle figure," said his recovery was accompanied by uncertainty and remorse.
The midfielder, who had torn ligaments in a Bundesliga match against Borussia Dortmund in early January, was told it could take up to nine months to play again after undergoing medical surgery.
Still, the decisive way to handle the recovery allowed him to speed up the recovery, making a full recovery in the second half of Thursday's European Championship against Denmark ( months in advance).
Belgium followed suit in Group B in Copenhagen, but after half-time, Witsel, Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard continued to lead, briefly winning Euro 2020.
"Maybe it's not the best comeback game," Witsel said at a news conference on Friday. "If we had calmly taken the lead at that time, it would have been very special. However, at the moment I have been thrown into the abyss and it works.
"Coming back is never an easy task, especially after five months of not playing. However, I immediately took ownership of the ball and felt like I was straight into the game.
"In terms of rhythm, it's troublesome, but after five months of rest, it's normal too. In the end, everything is positive. ”
However, this is usually not the case.
"It wasn't until the beginning of May that I realised I could get into the European Championship. Then, that's when I started strolling. Luckily, I didn't go backwards alone after that," another 32 years old, currently with 111 covers.
"I have confidence and perseverance. I realized I could speed up my recovery, but I also knew not to run away from any means. In the end, the hard work paid off. ”
For Witsel, this includes hiring apartments in Antwerp so that there is an option to recuperate with specialists and physiotherapists.
"My family stayed in Liège and we confiscated it as a whole so I could go back. But because of the people I loved, I had a tough time. ”
In any case, he doesn't think his return should be as difficult to explain as portrayed by mentor Roberto Martinez and the Belgian media.
"Everything I did was fine, but Christian Bentek suffered a similar injury and came back five months and fourteen days later," he said. 'Since I've been back to an important game, there have been more opportunities to show."