Derek McInnes paid tribute to the bravery of former Aberdeen player Greg Tansey for the way he dealt with his career-threatening injury.
Tansey missed 16 months of action after a failed hernia operation in September 2017, which required additional surgery to correct and he also needed a procedure on his left leg.
Later on during his rehabilitation, Tansey also contracted osteomyelitis and after breaking down during the Dons’ pre-season training camp in Cork last summer, wondered whether he would have to call time on his playing career.
Speaking to the Press and Journal this week, Tansey thanked McInnes and Aberdeen for their support through one of his darkest periods and the Dons manager was equally effusive in his praise for the ex-Caley Thistle and Ross County midfielder.
McInnes said: “You’ve got to offer that personal support to the player. In Greg’s case it was the eagerness to make an impact and then trying to deal with what was required; identifying the problem was there and it came to a head in the summer. It was more of an issue than we were expecting.
“What he did was deal with it with a lot of courage – he was determined to get back playing. Good on him for sticking to the letter and being professional, keeping his weight down and having the focus when he could get back into the swing of things, he was giving himself the best chance.
“He was very grown up and brave dealing with an injury that may well have finished his career.”
Tansey was released by Aberdeen in January after not playing a game in more than a year. He subsequently signed an 18-month contract with fellow Premiership side St Mirren and has featured in eight games since joining the Buddies.
He first suffered the injury in pre-season after joining the Dons from Caley Thistle. His last game for McInnes was a 3-0 defeat to Rangers at Ibrox, in which he had to be substituted before half-time.