Ledley - My career was over 30 seconds into my debut.

[gilzeantheking]

My career was over 30 seconds into my debut
EXCLUSIVE By SHAUN CUSTIS Published: 7 minutes ago
0

LEDLEY KING astonishingly admits he has been injured for his ENTIRE football career.
Spurs ace King was forced to retire last week at the age of 31 after tearfully conceding that his left knee could no longer stand the rigours of top-flight football.

But, for the first time, he has confessed that he has been crocked for 13 years — ever since he made his full debut in a match at Derby in October 1999.

He revealed: “It’s amazing that I played as long as I did really when I think back to that game at Pride Park.

“It was my first start for Spurs, I was playing in midfield and after about 30 seconds I was clattered by Rory Delap.

“I just about managed to complete the game but I needed an operation on my left knee afterwards which kept me out for six weeks. I’ve been having operations on that knee ever since.

“You could say that was the start of the end and it was only four days after my 19th birthday.”

King learned to live with the injury over the years. For the last five seasons he barely trained but, with the help of the Spurs physios and some medicinal aid, he was able to perform in games.

Not only that, he earned rave reviews from his managers and opposition players. Few doubt he could have played for the likes of Barcelona or Real Madrid had he been fully fit.

King could have given England a much-needed boost too and earned four times his haul of 21 caps.

He said: “I quickly grasped that I was never going to be as good as I wanted to be but I still felt I could be very good.

“It was probably most frustrating for the first year or so but it could have all been over after that first game so I came to accept how things were.

“There is a lot of disappointment though because I know it could have been different.”

It was in a home defeat by Norwich towards the end of the season that alarm bells started ringing loudly. City won 2-1 and King had a nightmare.

He recalled: “I’d had an accidental clash in training with a young keeper a few weeks before when I decided to throw myself about a bit and the knee was becoming a real problem again.

“But that Norwich game sticks out as probably the worst of my life. I just wasn’t at it at all. There weren’t too many times when I’ve come off the pitch and felt I was terrible but that was definitely one of them.

“Afterwards I was looking at my knee thinking ‘Can I ever get this right again?’

“Even then I’m not sure I saw the end coming. My last game was a 1-0 defeat at QPR but I didn’t know it was to be my final match. I felt like a machine which you could always find a way to fix.

“There were plenty of times my knee didn’t feel great on a Friday but I knew I would be all right for the Saturday. It was only halfway through last season where, for the first time, I wasn’t enjoying my football.

“Some days I could wake up and it would be agony and I would pray that the next day it would be OK.

“We managed to find a routine that got me peaking on match day with the help of antiinflammatories.

“I tried not to rely on them but 48 hours leading up to a game I would take a few to keep the swelling and pain down before a game.

“The physios and medical team were brilliant at finding ways of getting me out there. Most of my managers were great about my preparation although Juande Ramos found it difficult to understand a player couldn’t train.

“His training regime was tough and put me through more than I wanted.

“The knee blew up and then he understood it was right to follow the way we’d been doing it before. I would always try to train on the Friday with the lads. If the knee didn’t feel right then I would just jog.

“But I was in every day in the gym or around the place. I had a big problem with muscular injuries through not training and most of my work was about managing that and making sure I didn’t pull up in a game.”

King is looking to a future working as a Spurs ambassador and with the Skills programme in which the club help youngsters in the community.

There is talk of widening that role across London with the support of the Mayor’s office.

He also plans to take his badges with a view to becoming a coach or a manager. But would he be any good?

He laughed: “I haven’t a clue. No one really knows until they give it a try but I would like to work with kids and go from there. I want to see what I’ve got.”

King can see one major benefit about packing the game in — he might have some decent conversation at last.

He added: “Anyone I met in the street and other players I knew, they would always ask ‘How’s the knee?’ And every day I turned up at the training ground the first question was ‘How’s the knee?’

“It will be nice to talk about something else.”

An even more incredible story, than most of us knew.

 

[lol]

FUCKING RORY DELAP. I WILL HUNT YOU DOWN

 

[Mattspur]

I hate Rory Delap.

 

[Ziege]

He's the legend of my time. Every era has one, but Ledley is the 'the legend' for most of us growing up. I'm sure we will be telling younger fans about him "back in our day" 20+ years from now.

"Sore ankle and only 4 million a week?? Back in my day, Ledley King played for pennies a week on a broken knee! You kids these days!"

 

[punky]

What a guy. Broke my heart reading that.

 

[RickyVilla]

FUCKING RORY DELAP. I WILL HUNT YOU DOWN

I am on it mate

 

[Dougal]

Get the feeling Rory Delap has finally shaken off the tag of being known for only one thing.

 

[MrWoolley]

That was tough reading. I love Ledley :-(

 

[Damian99]

Get the feeling Rory Delap has finally shaken off the tag of being known for only one thing.

No, he's only ever been a ****

 

[MightyModric]

 

[tototoner]

Good interview

 

[Spurrific]

all because of Rory fucking Delap.

 

[haxman]

Annoying part of this is that an average player like Delap gets to see out his entire career relatively injury free yet one of the best defenders of his generation gets robbed of years.

 

[kaz Hirai]

shame, had no idea thats what caused his problems!

truly would have turned out for barca and madrid, the complete defender. amazing pace, strength, reading of the game, comfortable on the ball. Well ideally he would have ended up at those 2 and not chelsea as was rumoured some time ago

 

[King of Otters]

*Adds Rory Delap to 'The List', neatly sandwiched between Charlie Adam and Des Lynam*

 

[CosmicHotspur]

I think it's amazing that he went on playing for as long as he did.

Players get "clattered", as he put it, all the time. It was the worst kind of luck that it affected him so badly. Every knock and strain after that just exacerbated the situation and he must have been in a lot of pain at times although he hid it well.

It would have been well nigh impossible to raise his status even higher as a legend but that article just did it for me.

Love you Ledders xx

 

[peter_the_yid]

Delap is a dead man

 

[lillywhites61]

Wow that makes it all the more I incredible really that he performed the way he did for so long! What a fantastic player and servant to the club.

 

[jonathanhotspur]

That useless clodhopper Delap. How he's made a living as a footballer is anybody's guess.

I had no idea that Ledley was battling with this injury his entire career. Feel for him.

 

[Bus-Conductor]

On the flip side, if it wasn't for Rory Delap, I'm not sure King would have been with us for his whole career. We could all be hating him now for playing for Arsenal, Chelsea or ManU.