Eric Bailly told Ole Gunnar Solskjaer he had been desperate to return to match action for a week prior to Manchester United's win over Chelsea.
The defender has been out injured for nearly a year but made his return at Stamford Bridge on Monday night.
The Ivorian put in an emphatic display, dazzling fans with his ferocious tackling and majestic footwork to get out of trouble.
United won the clash 2-0 thanks to a helping hand from VAR which ruled out two Chelsea goals. Harry Maguire was also fortunate to stay on the pitch after kicking out at Michy Batshuayi.
Nonetheless Solskjaer's side picked up all three points and Bailly was a crucial cog in the victory.
"It’s not easy when you don’t play for so long," he told the South Morning China Post.
"But it only gets easier by playing games. I have been telling the manager that I want to play. I’ve been working hard and a bad, long, injury. I’ve been ready to play for a week and told the manager that. I took a few minutes to settle when the game started."
In truth Bailly did look shaky in the opening 10 minutes, giving the ball away a handful of times in dangerous areas. But he soon settled and put in a decent shift.
"I was nervous if I’m honest after so long away because it was almost a year when I was injured against Chelsea, but then things went OK," he added. "I felt the support from my teammates and my manager which is important."
Solskjaer himself was thrilled with the defender's performance and now faces something of a selection dilemma. Victor Lindelof, who has been Harry Maguire's first choice centre-back partner this season, was missing through illness. But the Swedish defender may struggle to reclaim his place after Bailly's impressive shift.
"Absolutely fantastic, wasn't he?' the Norwegian said of Bailly. "Not a bad [selection] conundrum, because Eric's a top player. It was his first game since we played Chelsea last year in April.
"He's such a top, top defender and his block from [Mateo] Kovacic is out of this world defending. He's quick, he's strong, brave as a lion and it's great to have him back."
