LINGERING INJURIES HAVE HELD LOLLEY BACK SO FAR
IT has been a “tricky season” for Joe Lolley, but the Nottingham Forest winger is confident he is starting to find form again.
The 28-year-old suffered from muscle compartment syndrome towards the end of last term, a condition which left him in pain in both legs every time he ran.
He had injections in the summer to try to solve the problem, but now admits he perhaps rushed back too soon.
Lolley continued to be a regular starter early on in the campaign, though he struggled to reach the high standards he had previously set.
After a spell where he was on the bench and not involved, he has begun to show glimpses of his old self in recent weeks and was back in the first 11 away to Swansea City last Wednesday night.
“I think finding form comes in time with games and confidence,” he said.
“It’s probably been a tricky season for me. I probably rushed back and played a lot of games.
“I think the rest has done me good, to be honest.
“Obviously,
I’ve been training hard and working hard to make sure I’m fit and ready, but having those breathers from games has allowed me to build up a bit of confidence in training.
“I feel like I’m going out on the pitch and enjoying it a little bit more, and, hopefully, improving with each game.
“Hopefully, I can add something to the team in the final few months and find my best form before the season ends.”
He added: “I didn’t really have a pre-season, I came back and probably wasn’t right in terms of my body.
“When your body doesn’t do things you want to do on the pitch, you forget how to do certain things; little things your body isn’t allowing you to do, like getting away from people.
“That knocks your confidence, because it’s something which comes natural to me – to move away past people. Then suddenly you find that you can’t do it. Those little things do affect you.
“It’s something new you’ve got to experience in your career and come out the other end of it.
“Hopefully, now I’ll feel a lot better in myself and it’s just about building back the minutes.”
A condensed season made for a hectic opening which saw a succession of midweek games.
On the back of his injury troubles and a shorter than normal pre-season, Lolley says it all caught up with him.
“It was a tough end to last year and the end of the season, I was playing through quite a bit of pain,” he said.
“I tried to sort it out in the summer, but I probably came back a lot quicker than what the process was.
“But I think we’re all the same, as footballers no one wants to be sitting on a bike in the gym when you’d rather just be out on the pitch. Naturally, you just try to rush back.
“My body probably didn’t accept it as well as I would have liked.
“I wouldn’t say I’ve enjoyed not playing, but for the first time in three years, I’ve just been sat there and actually been able to train.
“For almost two months at the start of the season, we had so many games, it was almost like gamerecovery, game-recovery, barely even training.
“For the first time in a long time, I’ve rested and feel a bit more refuelled. I feel a lot more ready to contribute now than I did a few months ago.
“I didn’t mind coming out of the team because, to be honest, I wasn’t playing well enough to deserve to be playing.
“I was resting my body and making sure I found my sharpness again in training, found some form and confidence.
“I feel like I’ve done that over the past month or two so, hopefully, it will be positive in the future and I can contribute more than what I have done so far.”
Earning a spot in the team has proved tough, however, with the Reds turning a corner.
After a miserable run from midnovember to December, they have now lost only twice in their last 13 League games, while there is plenty of competition for places.
“When the team have done well, are picking up results and players are doing well, the team comes first – especially with the predicament we found ourselves in,” said Lolley.
“The points are important, so you lose the individual selfishness of worrying about playing.
“I’ve played a lot of games in the last three years, so it’s not been the worst thing in the world, just having a rest and being able to find my body again and work hard in training.
“It’s been nice to be back involved in the last month or so and contribute to a few goals and some good performances.”
When your body doesn’t do things you want to do on the pitch, you forget how to do certain things.
Joe Lolley