Recovering Ibini vows to bounce back with Club Brugge

Sidelined striker Bernie Ibini is planning to be back in action by November as he bids to cast aside the nightmare of suffering a broken leg just a month after signing a dream three-year deal with Belgian powerhouse Club Brugge.

Australia Bernie Ibini Club Brugge

Bernie Ibini poses with the Club Brugge jersey in June. (Twitter/ClubBrugge)

Speaking for the first time since undergoing surgery to place a metal rod in his fractured tibia and a plate in his ankle, the 22-year-old fringe Socceroos player insisted he would put the setback behind him and make a success of his European adventure.

Ibini will begin physiotherapy this week as he seeks to go on and emulate the feats of close friend and former Central Coast Mariners teammate Mat Ryan, who went to the next level with Brugge before moving to Valencia for $10 million in July.

“I’ve been told it’s a four-month injury and I am pushing to get fit again for maybe November, perhaps play a few games then and then there’s the winter break. After that I would be aiming to be back at 100 per cent,” Ibini said.
“I have just got out of the cast and now I will start with some physio to get some movement back into the ankle but it will be a while before I will be able to walk properly, even with a moon boot on.

Ibini suffered the excruciating pain from the impact of the leg break, and severed ankle ligaments, as he went in for a tackle on the first day of Club Brugge’s pre-season training camp, having previously impressed in two pre-season matches.
“It was just a bit of bad luck nothing more than that,” Ibini said. “I am staying positive. The team will play a lot of games this season and I hope my chance will still come at some stage.

"It’s a serious injury but I will be able to come back 100 per cent from this. The process feels slow right now but once I can start walking and running again things will happen faster.

“When I first had surgery I was at a hotel and then when Maty Ryan returned (from his break), I moved in with him for a while and he helped me out a lot.

Though sad to see Ryan leave for Valencia so soon after his own arrival in the picturesque Belgian city, the move to La Liga came as no surprise to Ibini.

“For Maty, it’s a massive move, everybody knows how big a team they are and it’s a dream for him to be at that level now.” he said.

“I always knew when I came here that he could go during the off season. He's going to be a big success there."
Looking ahead to when he is able to return to fray for a side looking to improve on last season's second place Pro League finish, Ibini added: "Being here is a massive opportunity for me and something I’ve always wanted to do. I am doing everything I can to take the chance.

"Things happened quickly when they signed me, it was a bit of shock in some ways but a really welcome one.”


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3 min read
Published 3 August 2015 11:30am
Updated 3 August 2015 3:12pm
By David Lewis
Source: SBS

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