Before requiring necessary knee surgery, Lee Evans was at the peak of his abilities; now, he wants to set even greater standards at Pompey.
The 29-year-old is back in shape, and the Blues are using him to strengthen their alternatives in central midfield after losing out on Joe Morrell, Alex Robertson, Ben Stevenson, and Tom Lowery.
Evans’ entrance at Fratton Park on a contract that would last until the end of the season was announced when his Ipswich contract was canceled by mutual consent in February.
The Welshman had to undergo medial ligament reconstruction in October after being ruled out of the Tractor Boys’ drive for promotion in February due to an ongoing issue with his right knee.
After recovering, he chose to look for a challenge elsewhere rather than staying out of the starting lineup at Portman Road and waiting to get paid until the conclusion of the season.
Additionally, Evans, a two-time League One promotion champion, is excited to continue where he left off.
“I want to get back to that,” he stated to The News. “When I was playing at Ipswich last season, I was on fire, probably the form of my life.”
In October, I underwent a major operation called a medial ligament reconstruction, but I was glad to have it done. Injections are a treatment option, but the moment had come.
‘In September, I was hurt after a tackle at Huddersfield. The surgeon and I had previously decided that, in order to save my career, I should definitely get it done if it happened again. I was handling it well, but it was still bothering me because it was keeping me out for up to 12 weeks at a period.
“My only concern was getting it fixed properly because I was spending too much time in the treatment room.” I’ve been bothered by this issue for the past few of seasons.
‘I should have the knee I had when I was eighteen, smashing balls all over the place and leaping into tackles, according to the surgeon. “Happy days, that sounds good to me,” I exclaimed.
At 29, I’m in a crucial stage of my career and ought to be reaching the peak of my abilities as a central midfield player. I’m happy that I’ve resolved this issue because I think I have the best years ahead of me.
“It’s been a long five months after a major surgery, but I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, and I’m happy to be playing outside without any pain.”
Evans made 61 appearances for Ipswich after recruited by Paul Cook from Wigan in June 2021, yet his nagging knee problem cut both of his seasons short around February time.
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