Ekitike could be back playing by September as £68m Arsenal star provides inspiration for quick comeback - opinion
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Liverpool have been rocked by news that Hugo Ekitike could be out for a large chunk of next season after rupturing his Achilles tendon.Having been stretchered off against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday, Liverpool confirmed that Ekitike has suffered a serious injury on Thursday, with suggestions that he could miss up to nine months of action.But while the 23-year-old struggles to accept that his World Cup dream is over, and that he will miss the start of next season too, the story of Arsenal midfielder Eberechi Eze shows why there should be hope that Ekitike will be back playing for Liverpool far sooner than expected. Credit: Shaun Brooks/CameraSport/Getty Images Eze returned to action in just five months Eze’s story in football has been one of resilience.
Having been rejected by professional clubs as a youngster, he finally made it to the Premier League with Crystal Palace in 2020.However, by May 2021, Eze was suffering another enormous setback having ruptured his Achilles during a training session.Coming just before the end of the 20/21 campaign, there were initially worries that the then 22-year-old would be out of action until the beginning of 2022.But Eze is made of stern stuff and, remarkably, made his return to action on November 1st 2021, playing more than one hour of a Palace U23s match.Photo by James Gill – Danehouse/Getty ImagesREAD MORE: Liverpool have now found two players they’d like to sign after Hugo Ekitike’s injuryHis first-team return came less than four weeks later, as he emerged from the substitutes bench against Aston Villa on November 27th.Though he went on to play only 16 more times during the 2021/22 campaign, Eze soon found his best again, and after three more excellent seasons with Palace, signed for Arsenal in a £68m move last summer.Ekitike can follow a similar path to fitnessThere are some who are already writing Ekitike off, claiming that he will not be the same player whenever he does return.While there is no denying the seriousness of the setback, Liverpool’s No. Who should Richard Hughes be targeting above all… Photo Credit: Getty Images/Robin Jones Eze was one year younger than Ekitike when he suffered his own injury, but having worked hard and returned quickly, he has kicked on to become a better player than many had anticipated before the rupture.All 16 of his England caps have come after the injury, and he looks likely to win a big trophy with Arsenal this season.
If the Gunners lift either the Premier League or Champions League, Eze will have played a big part in it.For Ekitike, this is a story which is unlikely to help him too much as he deals with the immediate aftermath of such a devastating blow.But as he continues into his recovery he would do well to get on the phone to Eze to find out exactly how he made such a quick and determined comeback. For Liverpool fans fearing the worst, it should provide hope that all is not lost with one of their best players of a difficult season.