Anger has gone as Ngoo reaches peak

BACK TO IT...Michael Ngoo spent a long time on the sidelines after suffering a serious ankle injury

MICHAEL Ngoo had to climb his personal Mount Everest to resume his career in the aftermath.

But Athletic's most intriguing new addition says he no longer has any axe to grind with the £60million-rated superstar responsible for an injury that would have ended the career of a character with less single-minded determination to get back in the game.

Ngoo suffered a horrific ankle injury playing for Kilmarnock two days after his 22nd birthday on October 26, 2014. Celtic centre-back Virgil van Dijk - now at Southampton and rated as one of the finest defenders in the Premier League - came through the back of Ngoo in stoppage time.

PROSPECT

The accusation in the aftermath was that Van Dijk had allegedly wanted to hurt him deliberately.

The anger has long since gone, though. Two operations followed and former Manchester United and Liverpool prospect Ngoo looks back on his extended period out of the game philosophically, as the player signed last week by John Sheridan until the end of the season looks to prove his worth again.

"It is a mental thing," said Ngoo of his recovery, conducted in Canary Wharf under the watch of long-time mentor Lester Thomas.

"It was hard at the beginning, knowing how long I was out for. Then again, you realise who has really 'got' you.

"You realise that family are the ones who are always behind you and telling you to stay strong and to keep focused.

"When you are not playing, the telephone stops ringing. People stop taking notice and it is difficult, whereas when you are playing, everyone wants to know you.

"It was very difficult. But it's the past now and I am over it. It was a mountain to climb and a massive one. There were a lot of setbacks and that's how it is when you are coming back from a major injury.

"I just thank God right now."

Signed by Liverpool from Southend for £250,000 as a 16-year-old, Ngoo had months earlier played for Manchester United in the under-16s Milk Cup.

He speaks highly of his time at Anfield, during which he represented England in the under-20 World Cup.

"Liverpool taught me my game, really," he said. "They helped me technically and in the mind as well. It was massive for me.

"A lot of players who have come through at Liverpool will know how with the quality and level of coaching, it helped me massively."

A spell out on loan at Hearts was deemed a success, with five goals coming in a 17-match stint that took in a Scottish League Cup semi-final in which he scored the equaliser and a penalty in the shoot-out as Inverness were overcome after a 1-1 draw.

There were also short stops at Yeovil and Walsall before he was released at Anfield in the summer of 2014.

"It helped me but I was young at the time," Ngoo said of his experience at Hearts. "It gave me some experience of how the football life is, which is good.

"It was like wrestling on the pitch at times in Scotland but it was good, because it helped me physically. It is a rough league and you have to be strong to play there and it helped my to grow up."

His stay at Kilmarnock ended due to serious injury. Ngoo suffered a series of setbacks before finally feeling ready to get involved again in the summer of 2016.

He went to train at Bromley thanks to the connection of a friend and then, got the call from then-boss Stephen Robinson to be put through his paces with Athletic.

HAT-TRICK

A hat-trick in the reserves against Bury and a managerial change later and now, Ngoo has a contract in his grasp and a determination to make up for lost time.

"Bromley wanted me to stay longer, but the way I saw it I could play higher up," Ngoo added. "Thankfully, Oldham gave me a call after seeing I was back on the radar and just wanted to have a look at me, really.

"I was fortunate enough to score a hat-trick in the game and raise alarms again. Now, I just feel positive. I feel that massive things are going to happen now that I have overcome the worst."