Ianis Hagi has opened up on the tough mental and physical battle he's faced while out injured as he edges closer and closer to a return.
The Rangers star has been on the sidelines for close to a year after suffering a knee injury in a Scottish Cup clash with Stirling Albion in January. It's been an extremely difficult period for the Romanian as he battles the ups and downs of the recovery process. He's hailed the Light Blues' part and the support they've shown him through this period as he begins working with his teammates once again.
It is unknown exactly when Hagi will make his long-awaited return but it is sure to come as a major boost to the Rangers faithful and boss Giovanni van Bronckhorst with the Ibrox men going through a tough period of late. They've fallen nine points behind Celtic at the top of the Premiership while they suffered the unwanted tag as the 'worst ever' side in the Champions League group stages after six defeats and a -20 goal difference.
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He told RangersTV: “I was growing every season with Rangers and I was enjoying my football so much but then you just need one second and everything can stop. It’s a tough one to take but it is what it is. It’s a rollercoaster and you have to accept it.
“Sometimes you wake up positively and you’re going into training happy and then it just hits you what happened and you have to balance yourself and not to overlook the situation but try to stay with your feet on the ground and work every day and be patient.
“My first period I was on crutches I was here in Glasgow and afterward I had a period where I was in Amsterdam and I have to thank the club for this. They’ve been really open to what was mentally good for me and just being in different places like Amsterdam, back home in Romania and here supporting the team was important for me. I always worked to get back as soon as possible and since the new season I’m back in Glasgow and I was in Portugal. I had a week off and it was the only week off I’ve had in the last nine months.
“Being back here, being with the team and just feeling that I’m getting close is positive. You want to be around the lads. It’s been a tough one, it’s been a rollercoaster mentally and physically but I’m close to my final destination and there’s no better feeling and to experience it with everyone around here is twice as good.
“I’ve been blessed to be able to work with professional guys throughout my rehab. Even if it was just for a day they’ve helped me a lot to try recover. They respected my injury and knew it isn’t good to push, you have to listen to the knee. I’ve been blessed to work with them and right now it’s just another step to the final destination to get back on the pitch as soon as possible.”
Hagi is still young and has plenty of footballing years ahead of him but with his long-term injury freeing up some time, he's taken the opportunity to try and understand the game from a coaching point of view.
He added: “It opened different doors. I like coaching so even though I am young I am always keen. I’ve grown up beside my father and him being a coach, I always looked differently at games. Having more free time I’ve been involved in different ways to understand the perspective of a coach.
“I’ve looked at different games and understand not only what I need individually but the team game and what you have to do and the decisions a coach has to make."
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