'I had Triple H's injury!': Cardiff midfielder Ebou Adams' long road back

Ebou Adams (left) has won 12 caps for The Gambia, helping them reach the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations quarter-finals

Ebou Adams knew something was seriously wrong when he asked a physiotherapist how many other footballers had suffered the same injury as him. None was the answer.

It was July 2022 and the midfielder was playing his first pre-season friendly for his new club Cardiff City when, less than 10 minutes into the game against Cambridge United, he felt a sudden and excruciating pain.

"I hadn't even touched the ball when I went up for a header and someone hit me from behind at the most vulnerable point," Adams recalls.

"It managed to tear my pec [pectoral muscle] and the tendon completely off the bone, which we all thought was a shoulder injury at first. It was weird.

"I asked how many injuries like this happen in football and they said 'none'. I went and searched who else had got this injury: Triple H from WWE [World Wrestling Entertainment]! That says a lot about the injury."

In case you were wondering, Triple H tore his pectoral muscle in a 2018 tag team match against the Undertaker and Kane, after being thrown out of the ring and getting his arm tangled on a rope.

Whereas Triple H was approaching the end of his wrestling career, Adams was reaching his peak when injury struck, having joined Cardiff from Forest Green Rovers after helping them win promotion from League Two.

The freak incident kept Adams out for six months and then, just as he was recovering from that setback, the 27-year-old sustained a knee injury which ruled him out for the rest of the season.

Triple H, regarded as one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, suffered the same injury as Ebou Adams

"I'll be honest with you, it was a lonely time," says Adams.

"To sign for a club and to not kick a ball and get injured, that's hard.

"You don't get to build as much of a relationship with your team-mates. They're enjoying themselves on the pitch and you can't really get involved in the conversations. You're in the gym with the physio and strength and conditioning coach. I got frustrated.

"It's scary because you feel like you're in a ghost town. You feel like a nobody. But you want to be a part of something. You don't want to be remembered as the person who was injured.

"My family and my physios helped me out. I'd like to give them massive praise because I probably wasn't easy to handle. I was pretty determined to get back to where I wanted to be."

It has been an arduous road to recovery for Adams but, after his year on the periphery, the midfielder is starting anew this season.

More than 12 months after joining Cardiff, he finally made his competitive debut for the club when he came on as a substitute against Leeds United on the opening weekend of the Championship season earlier this month.

Adams then played his first home game for the Bluebirds - and earned a maiden start - against Queens Park Rangers a week later.

"I thoroughly enjoyed it. I am buzzing I get to play football with a smile on my face," Adams says.

"I completely forgot everything. When we got called up to the team travelling to Leeds, I remember thinking: 'What do I have to pack?!' I completely forgot how to be a footballer!

"Walking out at Leeds with the crowd, it felt like I was back at home. I was very nervous when I was going to come on against Leeds but, as soon as I crossed the line, I just felt like I was in my zone.

"I was even more nervous at home but, seeing the crowd, it felt good and I was just enjoying it.

"Now everyone knows what Ebou Adams is like as a player. I like to build a good relationship with the fans and it was probably frustrating for them, so I just say thank you for being so patient with me."