Infection ate my Achilles tendon, reveals Arsenal's Santi Cazorla

"If you're able to walk in the garden with your son again, you should be satisfied, they told me"

Infection ate my Achilles tendon, reveals Arsenal's Santi Cazorla

Santi Cazorla was told his serious ankle injury might have left him unable to walk, but now insists he will return to action for Arsenal at the turn of the year.

The 32-year-old has not played for the Gunners since October 2016 and has undergone eight operations on the troublesome Achilles issue.

Despite the drawn-out process, the Spain international remains determined to return to action - even after being told he would be lucky to walk properly following all of the procedures.

He also admitted to crying in pain as he tried to battle the injury - which first occurred in 2013 - while continuing to turn out for Arsenal.

"In the early stages it was feeling a little better, if I got warmed up I could play, but at the break when I cooled down a bit, I would cry," he told Marca.

"At that time I was still playing and they (doctors) told me it was okay. The problem was that it did not heal and the wounds would reopen and become infected.

"If you're able to walk in the garden with your son again, you should be satisfied, they told me."

After not being able to find a satisfactory resolution, Cazorla travelled back to Spain to see Dr Mikel Sanchez and had his Achilles tendon reconstructed.

"He saw that I had a tremendous infection," added Cazorla. "It had damaged part of the calcaneus (heel) bone and had eaten eight centimetres of the Achilles tendon."

Despite his travails, Cazorla is keen to return in 2018 and admitted being away from his family had proven to be the toughest part of his recovery.

"I won't be registered until January, but I will be back by then," he said. "My family are still in London because my children have started school there, being alone without them is the hardest thing."

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger said in September that he was also hopeful Cazorla would return in the new year.

'The flexibility of his ankle and his mobility looks good," the Frenchman said.

"It's now about getting back to full fitness without having any setbacks. It's very difficult not to set a time before Christmas, that's why I didn't involve him in the Europa League.

"But overall, after Christmas I hope he will be available. He has not played for over a year now, so you're always cautious to set a time or date. But overall it looks positive."

more courts articles

Man (25) in court charged with murdering his father and attempted murder of mother Man (25) in court charged with murdering his father and attempted murder of mother
Man appears in court charged with false imprisonment of woman in van Man appears in court charged with false imprisonment of woman in van
Man in court over alleged false imprisonment of woman Man in court over alleged false imprisonment of woman

More in this section

Manchester City v Liverpool FC - Premier League S Larry Ryan: Should we let coach Klopp write his own ending?
Donegal v Tyrone - Ulster GAA Football Senior Championship Semi-Final Cork vs Mayo game switched from Mallow, Fermanagh vs Armagh rescheduled
Cork v Kerry - Lidl Ladies National Football League Division 1 Limerick forced to move National Hurling League game from Gaelic Grounds
ieStyle Live 2021 Logo
ieStyle Live 2021 Logo

IE Logo
Outdoor Trails

Discover the great outdoors on Ireland's best walking trails

IE Logo
Outdoor Trails

Sport
Newsletter

Latest news from the world of sport, along with the best in opinion from our outstanding team of sports writers

Sign up
Cookie Policy Privacy Policy Brand Safety FAQ Help Contact Us Terms and Conditions

© Examiner Echo Group Limited