I was laid low by Covid-19 but I recovered, worked hard in lockdown and I can’t wait to get back to the game I love
THREE months without football has felt like eternity.
And I can’t wait to get back to playing for Everton because I’m not sure I have ever gone this long without knowing when I would play again.
I had the virus myself early on. I got it before the country went into lockdown. I went to play golf at Wentworth and felt ill driving home.
I was in the shower and all of a sudden felt like I was going to faint. I came out of the shower and needed to lie down. I woke up the next day and I felt really off.
I didn’t have a cough but felt lethargic and had the sweats for two nights. I went out for a run but had to stop after three-and-a-half minutes because my chest wasn’t right. I had to stop and walk home.
I knew at that point something was wrong. I told the physios and they sent me a test. It arrived six days later, by which time I felt better, but it came up positive.
Even when I felt better it took two weeks for my chest to feel back to normal when I was running.
When it became obvious that we wouldn’t be going into training for a while I turned my garage into a gym.
I’ve got a Peloton bike in there, a treadmill, weights and flooring and mirrors. I knew I had to put the work in. Everyone’s done that.
I got back in touch with my old youth team coach, Paul McGuinness at Man United.
He works for the FA now and we looked at some clips and talked about my footwork, how I can turn quicker and going through drills which I can use to improve that.
The club have been really supportive. They sent cleaners out to all the lads’ houses. They also gave us the option to take a deferral.
I think everyone appreciates that clubs are going through a difficult time. You could choose what percentage and some of the lads have deferred a lot.
It was unnecessary what Matt Hancock said about footballers –
99 per cent of footballers would have helped without that public pressure.
Seamus Coleman and Leighton Baines were in touch with the board and the PFA, and as soon
PWas anything came up they would send a message into the WhatsApp group and we would set up a Zoom call. I’ve been impressed with the way it’s been handled, and the protocols make you feel safe. Players had concerns about going back and rightly so.
They gave us all the same test as I had but it’s different when someone else does it. It’s more
DLF