Blues midfielder Alan Judge has described the injury he suffered while on international duty with the Republic of Ireland earlier this month as “a six-weeker”.
The 30-year-old underwent surgery a fortnight ago, three days after breaking his arm having come on as a sub in the Euro 2020 qualifier in Denmark.
Having spent a lengthy spell out after breaking his leg at Portman Road in April 2016 while a Brentford player, Judge might be viewed as injury prone, however, the Dubliner says he's not had too many during his career.
"People say I’ve had no luck. I’ve had two injuries in my career, this is the second,” Judge said in an interview with The42.
"I had one big one which kept me out for two years and everyone says that I’ve had injury after injury. I’ve had two injuries. It just seems to happen that I break bones.
"It’s a six-weeker, and you could pull your hamstring and be out for six weeks.
"Obviously, you feel hard done by, but there’s no point sitting around moping about it because you’ll get nowhere.
"Had I done that the first time I wouldn’t have got close to playing against Denmark.”
Judge, who is expected to miss Town’s pre-season games in Germany but is likely to be back in action in the domestic friendlies and ready for the start of the season proper, outlined how the injury occurred.
"We had a bit of spell down the right-hand side, Jeff [Hendrick] put a ball down the side and I went for it,” he recalled.
"Maybe, the last ten seconds, I probably should have held my position. But I went for the ball, got there before him [Kasper Dolberg] and he nudged me.
"I don’t think there was anything in it — he just nudged me, and that happens all the time in games. But the minute I fell — I could hear the crack in my arm. I knew straight away.”
He added: "I knew it wasn’t going to be that bad and that it would only be a few weeks but after playing the few minutes I had, and having got myself on the pitch, already I was thinking, ‘Gee, I could have a chance of starting on Monday [against Gibraltar in another qualifier].’”
Judge doesn’t believe Town’s drop into League One will impact upon his international aspirations: "If I get my arm healthy, then I’ll kick on. I have to perform. As long as I’m performing it doesn’t matter if I’m playing in the Championship or League One.
"Especially under Mick [McCarthy] — I know he likes me as a player, he tried to sign me a few times, which is a good thing.
"He showed faith in me to put me on in the Denmark game, and a lot of people would have thought to put others on.”
Judge is already working in the gym and says he is in no way daunted by having to make a comeback this particular injury: "Ah no, I’ve had a lot worse in my career. This is nothing.”