Dejan Kulusevski has revealed just how close he came to believing his football career was finished. The Tottenham midfielder says his recovery from a serious knee injury became so bleak that he sat his mother down and warned her he might never play professionally again.
The 26-year-old was hurt in Tottenham’s Premier League clash with Crystal Palace in May 2025. Surgery on his right patella followed days before the Europa League final against Manchester United, and although a quick return was initially expected, the problem proved far more stubborn. His absence stretched to 17 months, and he finally came off the bench in Tottenham’s 3-1 win over Coventry City on October 19. Speaking to the club’s SPURSPLAY platform, he described the mental and physical toll of one of the darkest spells of his career.
One of the hardest moments came in Bilbao. Kulusevski travelled to watch his teammates beat United 1-0, but he was stuck on crutches, could not safely get up onto the podium to collect his medal, and had to stay behind in Barcelona rather than fly home with the squad. He called it one of the toughest days of his life, saying it was lovely to see everyone so happy but painful to be on the outside of it.
He also explained the injury itself. Early on, the pain gave little hint of its seriousness, but scans later showed that a piece of his cartilage had broken off and drifted to another part of the knee. Since cartilage cannot be repaired, part of it was simply gone, which made rehabilitation especially difficult. It was at this low point that he told his mother he was losing hope of a comeback.
Throughout it all, he credited his wife, Eldina, calling her his idol and praising how she looked after their children while standing closest to him through the struggle. The turning point came when he returned to Sweden to train with friends and a physiotherapist. Exercises that had always hurt suddenly didn’t, and he rushed to tell his wife that they were going to beat this. The pain hadn’t vanished entirely, but he felt in control of his leg again.
Manager Roberto De Zerbi has held him up as an example to the whole squad, praising the courage, character and passion with which he handled the setback, and saying he shared that message with the players directly.
Against that backdrop, the Coventry appearance means far more than a routine return to the squad. It marked the end of a long stretch of doubt and painful rehab, and the saving of a career he once thought was gone. Spurs have badly missed his creativity and attacking quality, but De Zerbi will be keen to bring him back gradually, since rushing a player who has endured this much would make little sense.
