Everton Football Club News

• Nickname:Toffees
• Founded:1878
• Manager:David Moyes

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Arteta cautious over recovery

21 Jul 2009 - 13:13:24

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Everton's Spanish midfielder Mikel Arteta has refused to put a date on his projected comeback from a long-term knee injury.

The 27-year-old sustained cruciate knee ligament in February and is still some way away from full fitness, meaning that he will miss the start of the new Premier League season.

He told the Daily Post: "It's a long injury, six or seven months and there are always ups and downs in that period. But the work we are doing is going well.

"I don't want to set any dates for a comeback, I just want to go day by day. You learn with these injuries in the knee that it can be different every day.

"I have had three injuries in the same knee, it wasn't just the cruciate. I'm doing everything, working six, seven or eight hours a day to get back as soon as possible.

"But I won't rush it because I know it was a big injury. I am improving slowly, day by day.

"There is never a nice moment to get injured, but that period of the season, I was playing in the middle and the team was doing really well and playing really nice football - everything was going our way.

"Yes it was hard, but we all have to learn from these injuries, they will make me stronger."