Newcastle United defender Ryan Taylor has opened up about his injury nightmare after returning to training almost two years after his last appearance.
The 29-year-old has not for the Magpies since the 2-0 defeat at Chelsea in August 2012, when he sustained a second successive cruciate ligament injury.
He took to social media site Twitter to pay tribute to his followers for their goodwill messages throughout his ordeal.
Taylor said: “Thank you so much for all your support throughout my rehab, it’s been much easier with the support you guys have given me.
“What a fantastic feeling it was this morning to be back out training with the team. Moments like that are worth so much to me and my family.”
In April Taylor started the early stages of rehabilitation, although it was a slow process as every precaution was taken to avoid a fresh, career-threatening setback.
The right-back is desperate to return to the first-team fold for the start of the 2014-15 campaign, not least because he has little more than one year remaining on his current contract at St James’s Park, and must prove himself in order to earn a new deal.
Boss Alan Pardew sent the player on a number of scouting missions last term to help technical staff with match preparation.