Shaw nightmare I nearly lost my right leg in Dutch horror injury

Surgeon had to remove clots after double break Left-back admits he did not always work enough

Luke Shaw has revealed he could have lost his right leg as a result of the horrific injury three years ago that stalled his Manchester United and England career.

Left-back Shaw earned a recall to the England squad, for the games against Spain and Switzerland, after making an impressive start to the season with United and is aiming to make his first international appearance since March last year.

The 23-year-old has played only seven minutes for England since suffering a double leg-break in a Champions League game against PSV Eindhoven in September 2015.

Shaw did not play again for almost a year and found out that he would have lost his leg had he not undergone immediate emergency surgery in Holland.

“At the time, they were thinking about flying me back,” said Shaw. “If I’d flown back, I would probably have lost my leg because of the blood clots in the leg.

“No one knows I was really close to losing my leg. I didn’t know that until six months later when the doctor told me. I’ve got two scars down my leg where they had to cut it open and pull them out, the clots. I feel really strong now and my right leg is as it was before my leg break.”

Shaw has been criticised by his United manager Jose Mourinho at different times, had his mentality and fitness questioned and missed out on the World Cup this year. But it was the leg break that provided his biggest hurdle. “It was very tough at times,” said Shaw. “I never sat there speaking with my family saying I wanted to finish. It was just the fact it was very hard for me. It went on for a long period, doing the same things every day. I couldn’t do anything else because of the break. It was frustrating, but I came out the other side.

“I’d be lying if I said I didn’t think about stopping playing football, but I had a lot of good people around me, friends and family, who helped me through it.

“I had a lot of complications with my leg. That was a really hard moment for me in my career. But that was in the past. I want to be recognised as one of the best full-backs in the world one day and that motivates me highly.”

Other than his family, Shaw saw a psychologist to help him get over the mental scars of his injury and being told that his career could have been ended. “It was more my idea,” he said. “I went to see the doctor anyway to speak about it. The doctor at United has been really good with me and I started seeing him [the psychologist] when I did my leg.

“I don’t want to go into what we talk about, but he was a real positive. I benefited strongly from using him. I still use him now.

“He’s a really close friend now, I’d say. I work with him, but he’s a really nice guy and gets the best out of me. I enjoy using him.”

Gareth Southgate has picked Shaw only once previously, for the friendly against Germany last March, and the England manager claimed the former Southampton youngster has taken his time to realise what is required to reach the top.

A £27 million signing in June 2014, Shaw admits he did not work hard enough when he first joined United from Southampton as the world’s most expensive teenager, but is now determined to make up for lost time.

“In periods when everything was going well, I have taken my foot off the pedal and got comfortable where I was at, not carrying on to the next level,” said Shaw.

“That’s where I’ve changed from a kid to a man, I’ve realised that. That’s fair, you could say. But I’m here now. I’m back in the England squad. I have to keep going and take that on board.

“I’ve not made massive changes, but I’ve cut out some of the silly things I was doing. I’ve changed massively on and off the pitch. I’ve matured, grown up and I know what I need to do to push myself.

“I want to play for Manchester United, to stay there and fight for my place and prove my worth to the team. I want to do the same here now and give Gareth a headache over selection.”