From nearly losing a foot to walking out at Wembley

Many footballers people walking retired astatine Wembley Stadium arsenic the item of their career. Liam Gordon is grateful conscionable to beryllium walking astatine all.

The wing-back hopes to clinch what would beryllium a rollercoaster promotion for Walsall erstwhile they look AFC Wimbledon successful the League Two play-off last connected Monday.

Three years agone it was a imaginable helium could hardly person envisaged, sat successful a infirmary furniture fearing his ft whitethorn person to beryllium amputated aft a freak wounded successful training.

Gordon collapsed, his limb buckling retired of the blue, and it turned retired helium had suffered 'compartment syndrome' – a information much associated with superior interaction injuries.

"It usually happens successful car crashes erstwhile your limb gets trapped and the musculus dies," the 26-year-old explained to BBC Sport. "Then it got infected…"

The corruption was the worrying portion – Gordon needed 3 surgeries successful 5 days astatine New Cross Hospital successful Wolverhampton to prevention the little portion of his leg.

"I had to person country from my genu to my ankle – they opened it up and took musculus retired truthful I person a monolithic lump connected my shin now," helium added.

"There was a accidental I wouldn't get feeling backmost successful my leg, I had numbness down from my shin into my toes.

"I've inactive got nervus harm and numbness successful my shin and large toed truthful there's not a batch of sensation determination but that hasn't stopped me."

It did not. Amazingly, Gordon was backmost connected the transportation wrong 3 months, with the assistance of past adjunct coach, present caput coach, Mat Sadler - a full-back successful his playing career.

The Guyana planetary made his Walsall debut successful September 2022 – his ordeal having travel conscionable weeks aft helium had joined the nine aft being released by Bolton Wanderers.

"The gaffer helped me, one-to-one successful training, get backmost my sharpness and explosiveness, and I anticipation Monday, especially, I tin repay him for each the assistance he's fixed me," Gordon said.

He inactive made 36 appearances that play – different 102 person followed arsenic Gordon has been a virtual ever-present, establishing himself arsenic 1 of League Two's astir accordant performers.

"I ever person reminders of it but I perpetually springiness thanks," helium added. "It could person been antithetic – I mightiness not person played shot again.

"So I'm ever thankful, I ever person a grin connected my face, and I recognize I person this 2nd accidental to amusement radical what I tin do.

"It makes maine bask shot much due to the fact that of what could person been. I effort ne'er to hide what happened arsenic it keeps maine humble and helps maine done adversity."

And determination has been plentifulness of on-field adversity for Gordon and his team-mates since January.

Walsall were 12 points wide astatine the apical of the array astatine 1 stage, 15 points wide of 4th spot – but a 13-game winless tally outgo them automatic promotion.

How it unfolded connected the last time was adjacent much agonising, arsenic they were denied 3rd spot by a 96th-minute Bradford City winner against Fleetwood Town.

"We would ne'er person thought we'd beryllium successful the presumption we are now, astatine the commencement of January," Gordon said. "But that's what shot throws astatine you.

"It's evidently disappointing not to spell up automatically. But we're successful a fantastic presumption a batch of radical didn't deliberation we would beryllium successful astatine the commencement of the play and this is inactive a large opportunity."

That was the connection delivered by Gordon's chap defender Taylor Allen astatine Walsall's end-of-season awards.

Allen's begetter Carl, a erstwhile Midlands boxing champion, died aged 54 past September.

Yet the 24-year-old utilized his father's words arsenic inspiration to nutrient the champion play of his career, scoring 11 goals and adding 7 assists arsenic a set-piece taking, forward-roaming inverted centre-back.

"My aged antheral utilized to accidental to maine each the time, 'You're amended than what you are,' and I ne'er utilized to judge him," Allen told his team-mates.

"Then helium got ill, I got a occurrence successful my belly, and I realised I hadn't got galore chances near to amusement him what helium was saying was right.

"When immoderate things hap successful life, sometimes you don't get different chance, and this is 1 of those seasons, boys, wherever we won't get different accidental similar this."

His affectional code went viral and helped animate Walsall to seashore past Chesterfield implicit 2 semi-final legs.

"I was trying to prime the boys backmost up," Allen told BBC WM. "Football's not the be-all and end-all successful beingness and I've realised that rather young. It was conscionable astir trying to transportation that to the boys."

Neither Gordon nor Allen person played astatine Wembley. Indeed, of the matchday 18 who featured against the Spireites, lone 2 – veterans Jamille Matt and Albert Adomah – cognize that feeling.

Matt, 35, has won play-off finals determination but mislaid them too, and asked if the cliche astir it being the champion mode to spell up but worst mode to enactment down is true, helium said: "One cardinal per cent.

"If I could take astatine the commencement of the play a mode to spell up, if I was guaranteed, I'd take that mode [play-offs]. However, the accent levels up until that last whistle…"

Boss Sadler, meanwhile, is seeking Wembley redemption – helium mislaid doubly there, successful the EFL Trophy last and League One play-off final, arsenic Shrewsbury Town skipper successful 2018 and hopes it volition beryllium "third clip lucky".

If it is, helium volition constitute his sanction successful Walsall past arsenic the archetypal caput manager to pb the nine to a Wembley triumph – the Saddlers person lone played determination erstwhile successful their 137-year history, losing the 2015 EFL Trophy last to Bristol City.

"I decidedly privation to regenerate those memories with a happier 1 – but I don't privation to banish them due to the fact that they were fantastic occasions," the 40-year-old said.

"I'm a large believer that each of those things signifier you arsenic a idiosyncratic – and I'm 100% definite what happened years agone volition person nary bearing connected this game."