Alphonso Davies on his rehab: 'The hardest part is over'

It’s over 200 days since Alphonso Davies played a football match. The 24-year-old tore his ACL while on international duty for Canada in the CONCACAF Nations League third-place playoff against USA in late March. FC Bayern have been without their star left-back since then. It’s currently quiet at Säbener Straße because of the latest international break, yet Davies is continuing to work determinedly on his rehab at the training ground, with the hope of soon being able to train with the team again. “I’m running and training well,” Davies told fcbayern.com. “I just need to get a bit more muscle mass on my right leg. When the doctors told me how long it could take after the injury, I thought: ‘Wow, that’s going to be a long journey.’ But it’s all looking good now.”

As well as Davies, Jamal Musiala (dislocated ankle and fibula fracture) and Hiroki Ito (metatarsal fracture) have also been sidelined for months. Davies has shared some intense moments with the pair in rehab, with the three communicating regularly and motivating each other. “We see each other every day and try to keep our motivation up. It helps when you have good people around you,” revealed Davies previously in an interview with FC Bayern TV in July.

“It’s no good hanging my head and moaning or feeling sorry for myself,” knows Davies, who’s been doing exercises with the ball in his individual training since the start of September. The next step is to return to team training with head coach Vincent Kompany, although there’s no timing for that yet. The left-back may be renowned for his turbo acceleration, among other things, but with this he’s taking the required time and exercising patience. “Injuries like this are part of sport. The only thing I can do now is battle back, not as quickly but as steadily as possible, so that hopefully nothing happens again.”

Davies’ challenge: ‘It’s hard’

However, it’s not the work in the gym, the sweat-inducing workouts under the rehab coaches or the intensive running sessions that are the biggest challenges for the Champions League winner, but the mental factors. “The process is more difficult mentally than physically,” he revealed. “The muscles will come back by themselves, but not knowing how long you’re out for or whether you can do certain things – that’s hard.” In rehab, you’re continually working on various things that push the mind and the body. “Sometimes the body says: ‘I can’t take any more.’ Then you have to be mentally strong. That’s the only way to do it. If you don’t do it yourself, no one else will do it for you,” adds Davies.

Anyway, now the Canadian is looking forward. “The future looks good, the hardest part of the rehab is now over for me,” he knows. “I’m excited and looking forward to joining the team again and playing the sport I love.” Even without Davies – and thanks to versatile full-backs Konrad Laimer, Josip Stanišić and Sacha Boey – Bayern have made a flying start to the season with 10 wins from 10 games in all competitions. Soon the day will come when Davies is also involved – and the anticipation for this moment is palpable when you speak with him. “I can’t wait to be back on the pitch with my teammates, to help them win games and fight for our goals.”

While Davies works on his rehab, many of his teammates are currently on international duty: