Fit-again Nathan Aké was almost relieved when he broke his foot: “At City we had so many injuries that I always started too soon” | OneFootball

Oranje’s Nathan Aké played with so many persistent injuries this season. So much so that he has come out in a recent AD interview to suggest that he was almost relieved to have suffered a small fracture in his foot during a cup match against Plymouth Argyle in early March.

“It may be strange to say that,” he states, just before a training session of the Dutch national team in Zeist. “But that way, I finally got some rest to get fit.”

The Netherlands’ reserve captain is back with the national team for the first time in nine months after several injuries. He suffered a hamstring injury in his last international match against Germany. “And at City, we had so many injuries that I always started too soon. I was not forced to do that. I felt that it was necessary. It didn’t work, it just didn’t work.”

Aké didn’t just keep having hamstring problems. “I also had a stress fracture in my foot since October. I played with painkillers and kept going until March, when I got the fracture and had to have surgery.”

During his international absence, Aké saw Micky van de Ven, Jorrel Hato, and Ian Maatsen all perform well on the left side of the Dutch defence. “I finally feel fit again,” he says.

“I have been training for weeks, but I still have little match rhythm. I have not spoken to the national coach extensively and do not know what his plans are. Of course I want to experience another World Cup. I often think about our last match at a World Cup,” he says, referring to a penalty shootout loss against eventual world champion Argentina in the quarter finals.

“If only we had pushed through in extra time.”

GBeNeFN | Max Bradfield