A vivid and horrifying account.
Stephen Ireland is back in the fold at Stoke. Almost 20 months on from a near career-ending challenge in training, the former Manchester City man has returned to full fitness and is gearing up for a return when the Potters take on Coventry City in the FA Cup this weekend.
Ireland suffered a shattered left tibia and fibula after going in for a 50-50 challenge with Dionatan Teixeira (who sadly passed away from a heart attack at the age of 25 in November 2017) but is on the cusp of returning to competitive action after a long road to recovery.
Ahead of the game with Coventry, Ireland sat down with The Telegraph’s John Percy and offered a gruesome account of the injury, with some particularly startling imagery.
“I remember what happened as clear as day. It was a very relaxed session and in the last 15 seconds I was going for the tackle and nudged the ball off line and he [Teixeira] judged it wrong.
“He kicked through with his heel on my shinbone. I heard it snap and knew instantly it was broken. I was hopping on my right leg and looked down at my left leg – the ankle and foot was like jelly, swinging.
“The thing that will stay with me for the rest of my life was lying on the floor and looking up at Phil Bardsley. He was standing over me, he grabbed his head with both hands and screamed ‘Oh my God’ dead loud. I knew from his reaction I was in trouble. It just felt like my time, part of my story and to see if I was ready for the challenge.”
Stephen Ireland is on the bench today for Stoke – the first time he's been named in their squad in over 600 days https://t.co/xS20W1z1Hv pic.twitter.com/B6xsaBxZW0
— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) January 1, 2018
However, while that was certainly enough drama for one day, Ireland’s day went from bad to worse.
“What happened next was like something out of a film, it was crazy. The ambulance took ages. I was waiting, getting more and more annoyed because I just wanted the operation.
“We eventually got to the hospital and the paramedic ripped me so hard out of the ambulance that I bit down on my gas and air and one of my front teeth fell out.
“It was like something out of a cartoon, I saw it flying out of my mouth, out of the ambulance and on to the floor. I was escorted to a bed in hospital and asking for them to please find my tooth. He came back with a stone… I went mad.
“They finally found the tooth under the wheel of the ambulance. I was struggling to lodge it back in. I was just thinking ‘what’s next’. Well, I was getting married two weeks later.
He came back with a stone!? It’s like that scene in Friends when Monica accidentally cuts Chandler’s toe off, only for them to bring a piece of carrot to the hospital.
After a torturous road back to competitive action, Ireland seems ready to make up for lost time and it will be great to see the six-time Republic of Ireland international turn out for Mark Hughes’ side for the first time since May 2016. At 31, Ireland still has a few years left in him and, having endured such a traumatising time with injury, it’s safe to assume he will cherish the time he has left at the highest level.
Stoke need him, too. Currently languishing at 18th in the Premier League table after a wretched run, Ireland has the creativity and craft to offer something fresh going forward. Facing Coventry represents a good opportunity to sink his teeth back into football before potentially facing Manchester United at Old Trafford next week.
