The weekend's game against Borussia Mönchengladbach was a particularly special affair for Santiago Garcia, who featured in the starting line-up for the first time since matchday 26...
The weekend's game against Borussia Mönchengladbach was a particularly special affair for Santiago Garcia, who featured in the starting line-up for the first time since matchday 26...
The weekend's game against Borussia Mönchengladbach was a particularly special affair for Santiago Garcia, who featured in the starting line-up for the first time since matchday 26 last season. Since that appearance, a 1-1 draw at FC Köln, the Argentinean left back has spent five months on the sidelines with persistent knee problems. In this time, he had been forced to undertake an individual rehabilitation programme in lieu of taking part in first-team training.
It's no wonder, therefore, that he was grinning from ear to ear even on the day after Sunday's home win. His joy at being able to return to the Bundesliga was clear to see: "I was finally able to play the full 90 minutes again, and we won as well. It was a great day for me," said Garcia, visibly delighted. Despite having vast Bundesliga experience with many games under his belt, he was particularly tense ahead of Sunday's match. "I was very nervous, especially in the warm-up, but the nerves subsided after a few minutes," Santi recalls. With this match, he appears to have made a full recovery from injury. "It's completely behind me now."
His recovery time didn't come as a surprise, however. He has gradually been getting used to the exertion of the Bundesliga: "The manager and I came up with a plan together that would prepare me as well as possible. I've been working hard towards my comeback for the past few weeks and the U23s match against Magdeburg was another rigorous test. Viktor asked me afterwards if I was ready to return to the Bundesliga." He can hardly wait for the next game.
