David Brooks flies into Qatar to cheer on Wales v England as Bournemouth star hands team-mates World Cup boost

David Brooks has flown in to Qatar to cheer on Wales at their must-win World Cup clash with England tonight.

The Bournemouth ace featured for his country at Euro 2020 last year but has not featured for Rob Page's side since coming on as a substitute in the 4-0 defeat by Denmark in Amsterdam after being diagnosed with stage two Hodgkin Lymphoma, a rare form of cancer.

He made nine appearances in all competitions for Bournemouth in the opening stages of the 2021/22 campaign but has been recovering for more than a year having undergone intense chemotherapy treatment.

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The attacker has since made a full recovery and returned to full training with Bournemouth. However, he is yet to play this season as he continues to work his way back to full fitness following an immensely difficult period away from the pitch.

He was not included in Wales' World Cup squad as a result of his situation, however, he flew out to link-up with his international team-mates ahead of Tuesday night's showdown with England.

Posting a photo of Brooks on Instagram, FAW chief medical officer Jonathan Houghton wrote: "Seeing @db_36 fit and smiling made my day (photo courtesy of @tomlockyer ) it’s been a long road back from Hodgkin’s lymphoma but I think I can safely say that we all can’t wait until he pulls on a Wales shirt again.

"Hoping that he will run out for Bournemouth in the next 4-6 weeks."

The 25-year-old is set to be in the stands for the crunch World Cup fixture in Qatar - with Wales needing victory to stand any chance of reaching the knockout stages of the tournament.

Brooks has scored two goals in 21 international caps for Wales. Kick-off against England is at 7pm tonight. You can follow all of the latest build-up for the Group B fixture here.

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