Paul Robinson blown away by progress of crocked Everton star
The terrible injury suffered by Everton midfielder Andre Gomes in November and his subsequent miraculous recovery has been one of the stories of the season.
The 26-year-old went down under a horror challenge from Tottenham Hotspur star Son Heung-min, and it appeared that his entire campaign was under serious threat.
However, it appears that the Portugal international is made of sterner stuff that most of us presumed.
The midfielder has been back in first team training for a little while now, and he played in a behind-closed-doors friendly on Sunday.
Former England international Paul Robinson believes that Gomes’ fairly imminent return will be massive for Carlo Ancelotti’s side.
“It is a boost for everybody,” he told Football Insider. “It was such a bad injury. The world of football stood up and took notice.
“Such a freak injury and a really bad one for him at his age. To be able to come back as quickly as he has and to be able to play again you have to give a lot of credit to his professionalism and his dedication because it would have been easy to say, ‘That is it. I have had enough’.
“Under Ancelotti, he will be a great addition for them. To have him back in the reckoning over the coming months, for Ancelotti, it will be like a brand-new signing. They have not worked together yet.”
Is Robinson right, here?
He absolutely is, yes. Gomes coming back is going to be massive for the Toffees. They’ve been pretty poor in central midfield this campaign, so having the Portuguese star back will be huge.
It’s slightly strange what Robinson said about Gomes potentially feeling like ‘I have had enough’.
Why would he feel like that? Yes, it was a bad injury, but surely getting back playing is what would motivate him during his recovery – as it obviously has done? Is Robinson saying that Gomes might have thought about retiring after the setback?
That seems extremely unlikely, as has been proven by his lightning-quick recovery. Still, it will be great to see him back in a blue shirt nonetheless.
In other Everton news, a star Toffees player has emerged as a transfer target for two Premier League giants.