Dean Shiels hailed the dedication of Gerardo Bruna after the Argentine midfielder answered an eleventh hour call to come help Dungannon Swifts' Premiership survival bid.
The former Real Madrid and Liverpool man thought his time at Stangmore Park had returned to Spain after featuring in the Swifts final game of the regular season when they beat Newry City 2-1.
But the 32-year-old received a call from Shiels following Dungannon's first-leg defeat to Annagh United on Tuesday night.
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With James Knowles unavailable Shiels was desperate for some guile and experience in his midfield and Bruna was only too happy to head back to Tyrone.
The Swifts boss turned into a travel coordinator organising flights, hotels and airport pick-ups to get his star man back to Stangmore Park, with the hard work paying off as Bruna played a key role in the 2-0 win on Thursday night, hours after arriving back in the country.
"Bruna has flown back especially for tonight, he only got in this morning," revealed Shiels after the game.
"I booked the flights, the hotel and picked him up myself as I knew the importance of having him in the team.
"He has shown so much desire and has had to deal with personal issues off the field which people aren't aware of.
"He's been a pleasure to work with and his appetite to come and help this club stay in the league was so refreshing. His quality was really needed tonight.
"He was in France and Spain over the last few weeks.
"I rang him after the game on Tuesday, I didn't think he'd be available but we had a big desire to bring him because we knew how much he would help us.
"His quality is unquestionable, obviously given his fitness levels it was tough on him.
“Mentally it has been tough...just the whole play-off situation, the wait for the games and not knowing who we were playing and it seems like it has been a never-ending season.
"Mentally that was tough on the staff and the players, both teams.
"The league came to a decision and we got two games in two days, which was crazy, but both teams had to really throw everything at it.
"From our own point of view, having 12 players out tonight was just crazy and trying to get a team that could turnaround a deficit."
Shiels also had praise for Michael O'Connor, who bagged the crucial second goal on the night to preserve the Swifts' Premiership status.
"Michael produced a big moment against Portadown and then another one tonight," he said.
"That consistency from Michael has not been there this season, but his quality is unquestionable.
"The way he let the keeper go down and then put it over him was a big moment."
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