Vivianne Miedema gives latest update on 'slow' ACL recovery
Arsenal forward Vivianne Miedema has described her ongoing recovery from an ACL injury suffered in December as ‘really slow’ even if generally heading in the right direction.
Miedema suffered the dreaded long-term injury in a Champions League game against Lyon, only a month after teammate and partner Beth Mead had done the same thing.
“It’s going good. Really slow, but it’s little steps and obviously I miss being out on the pitch with my teammates,” Miedema said during BBC Two's coverage of Arsenal’s comeback WSL win over Manchester City on Sunday afternoon.
“I’m in the gym a lot and picking up things as well, not just football things. It’s trying to get back as quick as I can, but also trying to enjoy the time where I don't have the pressure of playing all the time,” she added.
Miedema ruled herself out of World Cup contention for the Netherlands as soon as the injury, which can have a recovery timeframe anywhere from 6-12 months depending on the severity, a status she later reiterated soon afterwards when she suggested nine months was her target.
Now in April, the expectation that she won’t be at the World Cup hasn’t changed.
“No hopes. I'm definitely going to miss the World Cup, which is hard,” she said. “But I hope to be back for the beginning of next season. That’s my focus right now and I need to be realistic.”
On the subject of Mead, who England manager Sarina Wiegman has all but ruled out of the tournament barring a ‘miracle’, Miedema added both players are just trying to stay motivated.
“She's obviously a bit in front of me [in the recovery], but you’ve seen what Sarina said last week. It’s a big ‘miracle’ that needs to happen for her to be fit for the World Cup. But we're both just trying to work as hard as we can,” the 26-year-old explained.
“It's frustrating for me because I'm a month behind, so I see her doing a lot of things and I'm not there yet. But it's very helpful [to be there for each other], and I hope we can just push each other as much as we can.”