EKDAL “IT’S BEEN A LONG JOURNEY BUT I’M FEELING GOOD”

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Defender opens up on coming back from injury

2024-11-15T12:00:00.000Z

EKDAL “IT’S BEEN A LONG JOURNEY BUT I’M FEELING GOOD”

Defender opens up on coming back from injury

2024-11-15T12:00:00.000Z

Defender opens up on coming back from injury

Hjalmar Ekdal has described his delight, after a long journey of recovery, that he’s finally making a comeback.

The centre-back last featured in the Clarets 4-1 loss to Newcastle United on the 4th May 2024 and was stretchered off with a hamstring injury during Sweden’s 2-1 defeat against Denmark the following month.

Since then, it’s been a careful process to get back on the pitch, but the 26-year-old says he’s in a better place now and can’t wait to return fully.

“I’m feeling good. I’m relieved to be back, really happy to be back. It’s been a long rehab process, but I feel stronger and believe that I’ll end up in a good place when I find my form in all this.”

Looking back to the time he picked up the injury, did he realise how serious it was?

“No, not at all. I just felt a tear but then eventually I figured out it was going to be a bit tougher than I expected.

“In terms of the injury, the tendon in my hamstring was completely ruptured. The surgeon had to stitch it together basically.

“I had the surgery in Finland. He was really, really good. Everything was really professional, and even the scar has been great. I’ve had no complications with the surgery whatsoever.”

In addition to the trials of a physical recovery process, Ekdal relied on the support of the group at Burnley’s training ground, his teammates, and staff, to help him with the mental challenge too.

EKDAL “IT’S BEEN A LONG JOURNEY BUT I’M FEELING GOOD” - Image 1

“Physically it was tough but mentally it was even tougher maybe. Mentally it’s a big, big part of being a professional in the first place. It’s not everyone who has their place in the team, where they feel important and feel like a player that plays a lot of games. If you’re on the bench a lot, it can already be mentally frustrating. And when you get an injury like this, and you feel like you miss up to half a year of football then of course it’s even worse.

“I felt it, especially living alone here in England. I think it’s even more tough to get an injury like this. But I would say this environment here has helped me a lot, I think I’m in a really good environment, all the staff here are really good, they’re good human beings so it's nice to be around and you feel safe mentally.”

So how have the past few months looked for the Swedish international who’s had some more time on his hands?

“It’s been the same as if I’m fit because I’m at the training ground almost every day still doing rehab. But I’ve had more time to go home for a week to see a physio there, then I can also see friends and family at the same time. I’ve had a couple of trips home which has helped me during this process for sure.”

Another hobby that’s kept Ekdal busy is reading…

“I read books occasionally, not every day but I’ll grab a book once or a couple of times a week.

“Lately the last couple of books have been crime fiction novels. My next challenge though is to read the books in English. That would really be a tough task for me, but I think it’s a good challenge in that way, to improve your English at lot.

“I would definitely handle reading an English book, it’s just sometimes the context can be hard if it’s difficult words. I think English is the language with the most vocabulary in the world, so we have so many words that we might not have heard of. But if you read it in a context, maybe you can understand the meaning of it easier. So that’s the next challenge.”

During his time off the pitch Ekdal has been on a similar recovery journey to some of his fellow injured teammates, and with camaraderie between the group he says they’ve all supported each other.

EKDAL “IT’S BEEN A LONG JOURNEY BUT I’M FEELING GOOD” - Image 2

“That’s also helped me. I’ve been with Nathan [Redmond] and Aaron [Ramsey] throughout the whole process. Hannes [Delcroix] has been with us too. You don’t want to see anyone down there for such a long time but when they are there, and you’re there, I feel like it’s helping you to work together side by side, you can see each other’s progress and you’re pushing one another. It’s just nice to have your friends down there, doing the same thing as you, going through the same thing as you. I think that also helps you mentally.”

Having returned to the training pitch, Ekdal is now looking forward to getting some minutes under his belt.

“We’re in full training now. We haven’t played any games, yet, which will be the next thing to do, where you’re really exposed at maximum level. We’re going to play with the U21s on Friday to get some game time.

“It’s a process, you have to be really careful. You have to take it step by step, it’s better that everything is really tidy, clean, and perfect, instead of just rushing. I think that’s the same with everyone that’s down there now, especially for me, Nathan, and Hannes. We’re all in the same process so we’re kind of back now but we’re still at this last step.”

And after such a long journey how did it feel to reach that last step?

“It felt really good, you feel so much closer. Even though the first time I stepped out on the training pitch was a long time ago, at that point I couldn’t do that much, and I was still really, really careful. It’s just the feeling of going out. I think mentally, it helps you a lot, you feel like you’re almost there. And when you’re on the pitch you can take steps forward every day, which means you run a bit longer every day, maybe run a bit faster every day, you do four repetitions of one exercise instead of two, so you always increase the load, increase the intensity.

“It’s been a long journey but now I’m finally at the end station.”

And it must be a special feeling getting back to what he knows best, making a tackle, kicking a long ball?

“That’s another step when you first go to the pitch. A tackle or a long pass, it’s still far away. So, you start really, really small. Maybe one month after I got onto the pitch, I kicked a ball long and when I did that, I thought I’m feeling quite secure in my hamstring now, I can actually do this! Because it’s in your head, you know you’ve had surgery there and maybe you’re afraid of kicking or passing a ball hard, sprinting fully. So, when you go through those obstacles, mentally it helps you a lot.”

EKDAL “IT’S BEEN A LONG JOURNEY BUT I’M FEELING GOOD” - Image 3

Having spent this time on the sidelines, Ekdal has been supporting the team’s Championship campaign, and feels there’s a strong family bond within the group.

“It’s been good [watching the team]. Of course, when you’re not in the squad or playing, everyone here wants to be close to the team, to feel like you’re in it somehow. At home at Turf Moor, it’s always a joy to watch Burnley play, with all the possession we have, all the good players we have. It’s always nice to be there and support. It also makes it easier to come into the team afterwards if you’ve been there and supported from the side. It’s a natural step to take.

“I’m not sure if it’s like that in every team [having a family bond], but I think that feeling is what you’re trying to achieve in every football team. That feeling can give you a 10% boost of making everyone want to do everything for each other. That feeling in general is important, to make you feel at home in the team both on the pitch and off the pitch.”

Finally, with Head Coach Scott Parker having arrived in the summer, Ekdal is looking forward to getting back out there, showing the boss what he can do, and most importantly be happy playing again.

“It was bad timing with the injury. As soon as he came, I got injured so I haven’t really shown who I am. But hopefully he’s watched something before, prior to when he came here. Now it’s up to me to not think about it, just go out and play. Hopefully, he will see my qualities.

“I’m aware that it’s a difficult situation right now when we’re doing so well in the defensive line. Our centre backs are doing so well at the moment, I would almost say they’re our best players currently in the team. I’m aware it’s a tough situation and it’s a big competition because we have a lot of players there as well. I’ve just got to not think about it too much, just go out there and play. Try not to focus on ‘am I going to play?’ or ‘does he know who I am?’… just bring what you can to the pitch, be happy and play.”

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