Blues centre-half Damien Delaney says a screw inserted in his foot during his recent surgery probably saved his career. The 30-year-old returned to action in the Boxing Day draw at Leicester and is set to keep his place for today’s match at Reading.
Delaney says that without the screw the injury he suffered in the defeat to Crystal Palace in October could have kept recurring: "I had a stress fracture in my right foot. The surgeon said I could take about five weeks off, let it heal and then I would be back playing again.
"But he said ‘I can’t guarantee it won’t go again’. He said I could come down from a header and it could snap in two if I landed wrong.
"He explained that if he inserted a screw I might be playing with a bit of discomfort but at least it wouldn’t get any worse.
"That’s the safety net for me. I am safe in the knowledge that I can operate at full capacity and the pain is as bad as it is ever going to be.”
It’s the second time in 18 months Delaney has had to thank surgeons for saving his career, having suffered compartment syndrome in his thigh during 2010/11 pre-season training.
Delaney, who has also been given orthotic inserts for his boots, says the screw looks like it could have come from his local DIY store: "I have seen x-rays and you can see the screw clearly. It is keeping things firmly in place.
"It’s the sort of screw that could have come out of a door hinge, something you might pick up in B&Q.
"The surgeon did a fabulous job. He has told me just to let the effects of the operation wear off, keep building up my strength and I should be fine.”
The Cork-born defender says his fitness was an issue even prior to the foot problem: "I was injured three days into pre-season, then in the first game of the season I tore my ankle ligaments
"I never got going after that and carried it for a few weeks but that’s no excuse for results like the one at Peterborough. I put my hand up to play in that one so I was fully fit.
"The Crystal Palace game was a bit of a nightmare and with starting so few games I feel as if I’ve missed half a season. There’s still 24 league games to be played and I want to play in as many as possible so that we can get as close to the play-offs as we can.”
He says that having got himself fit, he wants to stay in the team: "I worked really hard with the physio on my rehabilitation. Some people seem to think that when you are injured you just sit around drinking tea but it’s definitely not like that. I was doing three sessions a day — cycling, swimming and on the anti-gravity treadmill.
"It was good to get picked for the Leicester game. I always knew I would be in with a shout after Danny [Collins] went back to Stoke and when the gaffer asked if I was OK I just said ‘Definitely’ and couldn’t wait for the kick-off. I felt I did OK and now I just want to stay fit and find a bit of form.”
Manager Paul Jewell says he was pleased with Delaney’s performance at Leicester: "He broke that metatarsal against Palace and came in on Monday and did ever so well.
"There’s no such thing as any position being anyone’s own in football. He got an opportunity to stake his claim for the next game, which is what I want, and that’s what he’s done.”