Tottenham ace Radu Dragusin opens up on recovery journey after 11 months on the sidelines | OneFootball

Tottenham Hotspur defender Radu Dragusin has opened up on his long recovery journey after undergoing surgery to correct an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) damage.

The 23-year-old centre back strained his ACL in the latter stages of Tottenham’s 3-0 Europa League win over Elfsborg back in February.

Dragusin has been working on getting back to full fitness and even featured in a behind-closed-doors friendly game.

The Romanian centre-back finally marked his return in Tottenham’s narrow 1-0 win against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park after nearly a year on the sidelines.

His five-minute cameo in the London derby helped Tottenham’s cause as they held on to claim a crucial victory after back-to-back defeats against Nottingham Forest and Liverpool.

Dragusin has admitted that his 11-month journey to recovery tested him both physically and mentally – one he now calls the biggest challenge of his life.

“It’s been a long journey, the biggest challenge of my life,” he told SPURSPLAY. “I just kept going. I had people next to me who helped me, my team-mates, my family, and my fiance.

“I knew the road was going to be long, but I knew there was going to be a light at the end of it. Today, I’ve seen the light. I can’t even describe the feeling I’m having.”

Dragusin has wasted no time outlining his target for 2026. The centre-back is convinced he has what it takes to fight for a starting role and is eager to prove himself from the start of the new year.

“I learned to have patience and believe in doing the right things over and over again,” he added.

“A big part of my recovery was just doing the same things over and over again, just to get better at it and have a normal knee again.

“It looks easy, but it’s a pretty big thing that the surgeon did in my knee. So, just to come back from that and perform at the level the Premier League asks you to perform, it takes time.

“I’m just hoping to come back onto the pitch and fight for my place. Hopefully, this year is going to be an even better one than 2025 for us as a team.”