Giovanni Leoni offers rare injury update as Liverpool teammates show support

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Giovanni Leoni has been sidelined for more than six months due to a serious knee injury but is making progress with his recovery, having returned to the field at the AXA Training Center

Liverpool defender Giovanni Leoni is on the comeback trail(Image: Getty Images)

Giovanni Leoni has shared a social media update on his recovery for the first time since he suffered a serious knee injury during a League Cup game earlier in the season.

Leoni was making his debut as Liverpool faced Southampton in September when he suffered an ACL rupture, and he has not played since.

The Italian youngster had also not shared an update with fans on social media since that setback, but on Friday (Mar. 27) he uploaded a post on Instagram for the first time in six months.

It featured images of Leoni doing some work with the ball on the grass at the AXA Training Center, which is an encouraging sign as he targets a return to action.

Leoni's Instagram update is his first since he spoke to Italian outlet Gazzetta about the moment he sustained the injury three months ago.

Leoni recalled "As soon as I hit the ground I said to Conor Bradley, my teammate: ‘I’ve done my cruciate.’

“It had never happened to me [before] but it was a strange feeling, I thought: ‘That’s it, period.’ A great, strong pain, the strongest pain I have felt in life…

"I believe that life reserves certain things and destiny has led me to this. To myself, I say: ‘It must have happened to make me stronger.’

“I can’t look at the long term, I only think about training my mind. I am determined to look at the day itself, to do what makes me feel good and take care of the recovery. Setting long-term goals means having new problems, in case of slow-downs [in recovery].

“Now the hardest part is over. I’m doing rehab, I’m in the swimming pool, the gym.

"For a footballer, an injury like this can be the most difficult moment of his career but now I just want to train my head to come back stronger than before.

“I think that’s the key thing: the head can do most of the work.”

Despite the good news on Leoni's recovery, it remains the case that he is not expected to return to the team until next season.