Yannick Bolasie has vowed to take his game “to another level” as he revealed his rehabilitation work over the summer to step up his recovery from a serious knee injury.After a promising start to life with the Blues following a switch from Crystal Palace in August 2016, the DR Congo international suffered the major setback against Manchester United last December.
Bolasie has since undergone two operations to rectify the problem and continued his recovery during the off-season in a bid to return to competitive action before the end of the calendar year.
And the winger has thanked manager Ronald Koeman and the Club’s medical staff for allowing him to go around the globe - to locations such as Miami, Dubai and Sardinia - in an attempt to speed up the healing process.
“I’m doing a lot of my rehab while everyone is resting,” he told evertonfc.com. “I’m working hard to come back in better condition.
"Getting back in December would be the best Christmas present. A player like me always wants to be on the pitch.
“[Going away] has helped me massively. It’s taken my mind off not being able to play. I don’t know the ins and outs of exactly what is happening and sometimes you want to be like that - to be able to just completely switch off. When I’ve come back, I’ve felt really refreshed.
Yannick Bolasie has vowed to take his game “to another level” as he revealed his rehabilitation work over the summer to step up his recovery from a serious knee injury.
After a promising start to life with the Blues following a switch from Crystal Palace in August 2016, the DR Congo international suffered the major setback against Manchester United last December.
Bolasie has since undergone two operations to rectify the problem and continued his recovery during the off-season in a bid to return to competitive action before the end of the calendar year.
And the winger has thanked manager Ronald Koeman and the Club’s medical staff for allowing him to go around the globe - to locations such as Miami, Dubai and Sardinia - in an attempt to speed up the healing process.
“I’m doing a lot of my rehab while everyone is resting,” he told evertonfc.com. “I’m working hard to come back in better condition.
"Getting back in December would be the best Christmas present. A player like me always wants to be on the pitch.
“[Going away] has helped me massively. It’s taken my mind off not being able to play. I don’t know the ins and outs of exactly what is happening and sometimes you want to be like that - to be able to just completely switch off. When I’ve come back, I’ve felt really refreshed.
“I’m grateful that the Club - the manager and the medical staff - have allowed me to have a couple of breaks.
“I have come a long, long way [in my career] and I still feel like I have got a lot to show. I’m looking forward to the challenge. Obviously, getting over this injury is a challenge in itself but once I do it, I’ll be back happy and ready to go again.”
Indeed, Bolasie is determined to return better than before and believes the prolonged lay-off could help improve his game in the long-term.
"Strangely, I think that having this injury will give me the composure that I have been looking for,” he added.
"I know that will take my game to another level. I am going to be subconsciously more cautious with any sharp movements, but that should improve my game massively.
"My old managers always felt I would gain more composure with age.
"Now I have had this injury, I think it will come, but I don't think I will lose my pace or my sprinting - and I feel strong already."
Everton FC