Ex-Liverpool star suffered 'nightmare' at Anfield before Galatasaray happiness

Harry Kewell spent five injury-plagued years at Liverpool, but the Australian forward eventually rediscovered his passion for the game after joining Galatasaray in 2008

A former Liverpool player reflected on his time at the club(Image: Getty Images)

Harry Kewell suffered from injuries during his five years at Liverpool, but he regained his passion for soccer after joining Galatasaray.

Arriving as an exciting winger from Leeds in 2003, he spent considerable time in the physio's room, which prompted him to consider retirement while still in his twenties. The Australian had supported the Reds and was given the legendary No. 7 jersey when joining Gerard Houllier's squad.

Kewell, who will see his two former teams play each other on Tuesday, made 49 appearances in his first season, scoring 11 goals, though the pinnacle moments and heartbreaks of his career would come under new manager Rafa Benitez. Injury concerns escalated the following year, limiting him to 23 starts, yet Kewell was selected for Liverpool's pivotal matches.

The forward started in both the 2005 League Cup and Champions League finals, although injury forced his heartbreaking substitution after just 23 minutes against AC Milan. Upon regaining his place in the first team, Kewell was picked for the 2006 FA Cup final, only to be substituted in the 48th minute with a groin injury.

That blow signalled the start of an extended spell out of action, featuring merely three times throughout the following campaign, and caused him to doubt his career prospects.

It was only after his 2008 transfer to Galatasaray, who welcome Liverpool in the Champions League on Tuesday, that Kewell finally overcame the struggles he'd experienced at Liverpool.

Kewell spent three years at Galatasaray(Image: Getty Images)

"I was going through a bad moment towards the end of my time at Liverpool, because I didn't know what was happening with myself," Kewell told SBS Sport in 2017.

"I remember sitting on the end of the bed and telling my wife, 'What's going on? I may have to quit.' I wasn't enjoying football. I wasn't feeling great; every time I was playing, my body was breaking down.

"We decided that I had to move to get a fresh start and break out of England... my adventure started in Istanbul, and I remember just falling in love with football again because I had gone through such a horrible time.

"At Leeds I felt great, then I won a lot of things at Liverpool, but on an individual level it just wasn't great for me, and I just didn't really love football that much. So when you talk about falling in love with football again, that's what Galatasaray did for me."

During his three-year spell in Turkey, the 47-year-old made 91 appearances, scoring 34 goals and providing 17 assists.

His only trophy came in the Turkish Super Cup, but the joy Kewell found at Galatasaray was a world away from the persistent injury problems that marred his spell at Anfield. "I've had 14 operations, and the majority were at Liverpool," Kewell said in 2016.

"It was a nightmare. An absolute nightmare. You'd have an operation, and you think, 'That's it, that's finished now.' I'm going to be brand new again.' It doesn't happen. An injury is like a jigsaw puzzle. You fix one area, and something else goes.

"The bottom of the world is when you're sitting on the end of the bed crying, and you're going, 'Am I ever going to play again?' You're sitting there going, 'What's wrong with me?'"