Ghana left-back Abdul Baba Rahman has thanked Chelsea’s medical staff for helping him get back onto the pitch after suffering a knee injury.
The 28-year-old underwent three knee operations and contemplated ending his career back in 2019.
However, with the help of Chelsea's medical staff, the former Asante Kotoko defender returned to full fitness and was included in Ghana's final squad for the global showpiece.
“You have to understand that having two ACLs and a meniscus operation shows how tough and mentally strong I am to get back to playing again," Rahman told Nizaar Kinsella in an interview.
“It came after the surgeon told my agent that I should be happy if I could even get back to playing again after the first one, because of the complications in the knee.
“I would like to thank Paco [Biosca], Thierry [Laurent], John [Fearn] and Stewart [Vaughan] at Chelsea. They were like angels to me. They gave me strength and always helped me to stay positive.
“At one point, I decided I had to quit football because of all the complications I had but they just gave me the confidence to keep going."
“I remember after the first ACL injury at the African Cup of Nations, I was 22 and now I am 28. I feel like it flashed by. Every operation is tough. I’ve not had the games that I dreamt of and it has gone too fast - and that’s very frustrating for me.”