Hearts striker Kevin Kyle admits he feared his career was coming to an end following a second serious hip injury.
But the 29-year-old is now confident he will return to action - and is aiming to be fit for the new season. Kyle, who first had hip problems while at Sunderland in 2005, has not played since January after first experiencing pain in his groin while turning sharply during the New Year win over Hibernian.
Kyle told BBC Scotland: "With the experience of 2005 I tend to become paranoid when I get injured. I'm fortunate that I'm 30 in June. It would be worse if I was going to be 20. It was worrying. I was wondering if I would need to pack it in."
Kyle added: "I'm on crutches for six weeks, non-weight bearing, then for seven weeks after that it's building up the muscles.
"After 13 weeks it's running and once running is comfortable, it's a case of how quickly I can get fit. That will coincide with July or August."
Kyle had more than a dozen injections and visited specialists across Britain in a bid to get the problem diagnosed.
A Bradford-based surgeon eventually performed an operation to repair cartilage damage and wear and tear to the hip.
"It's all repaired now," Kyle said. "Since January 1 it's been torture. I've had a kid and the missus is at the end of her tether because I can't help round the house.
"The surgeon said if it doesn't work, you're going to struggle. The rehab each day is long. I've got to sit on a bike and pedal two lots of 45 minutes just looking at a blue wall. It's horrendous.
"It's good to be involved at the club again. I can feel a difference."
Source: PA
