Jean-Philippe Gbamin has thanked the Everton medical staff that helped him through his long-term injury problems since arriving at Goodison Park.
The midfielder finally made it back onto the pitch for his side on Monday evening, coming off the bench in the second half of the 1-1 draw against Crystal Palace after spending 597 days on the sidelines.
The 25-year-old suffered a quadriceps injury in August 2019 after making just two appearances for the Blues following his move from Mainz in the summer of 2019.
Then, when Carlo Ancelotti's side were preparing to make their return to action from the first coronavirus lockdown in May 2020, Gbamin suffered an Achilles tendon problem which kept him out until Monday's match.
And the midfielder has now thanked the medical staff that have given him support during his time out of the side.
He told evertontv : "The medical team have been very, very good with me.
“They gave me great support. Danny Donachie [Director of Medical Services], Craig Porter [Physiotherapist], Adam Newall [Physiotherapist] Richie Porter [Podiatrist], all the staff who helped me… everybody was here for me.
“We had good moments together, so I was not only thinking about the injury. Every day I came here, I was happy.
“And even if I was starting to think badly or feel badly, they were always here for me, and gave me great support.
"I'm always competitive “When you do sport, in general you have to be competitive because you want to go to the highest level you can and you want to be the best.
“You have to be competitive.
“This is what I do and I hope now I can show how I am competitive on the pitch with my teammates."
