Tottenham forward Solanke recently accepted an interview with The Athletic and talked about his experience this season.
Solanke has been plagued by injuries this season. His last appearance was in Tottenham's 2-0 victory over Manchester City in August. Before Tottenham's 1-1 draw with Wolves, head coach Thomas Frank said of Solanke's injury: "It's an ankle injury, a bit tricky. It's not a big problem. We are optimistic that the recovery will be relatively quick."
A few days later, Frank announced that Solanke needed surgery, but it was only a "minor operation" and "the recovery time is not expected to be long."
As Tottenham gradually adapted to new coach Frank's tactical system, Solanke was forced to sit on the sidelines. The 28-year-old forward is edging closer to a return to form but will not be available for this weekend's north London derby or next week's Champions League clash with Paris Saint-Germain.
Solanke said: "It was very difficult. At first, I thought I wouldn't be out for too long, but we didn't really know the extent of the injury. I tried to come back as soon as possible, but it didn't work out, so I had to have surgery. Since then, I have been working hard to recover."
"I haven't set a specific timetable because over the past few months I've been telling everyone 'I'll be back soon'. I'm taking it day by day now, but hopefully I won't be out for too long."
Solanke has consulted outside experts about his injury. He's back in the gym working on strength and should be back soon.
Solanke scored nine goals in 27 top-flight appearances last season, but what stands out most is his work rate. He would chase and harass defenders to force them into mistakes, allowing Spurs to win the ball back high up the pitch.
Talking about new coach Frank and the team's performance, Solanke said: "I haven't had many opportunities to work with Frank, but he is very good at personnel management and all the players like to have him around. He communicates with all of us and has meetings every day. Even the coaching staff he brought, everyone gets along very well, which is a great environment. We started the season Yes, when more people return from injury, hopefully we can do something big."
One of the reasons why Solanke joined Tottenham is to compete for trophies and participate in European competitions. During the team's journey to win the Europa League, he scored key penalty kicks in the quarter-finals and semi-finals. Recalling the final against Manchester United, Solanke said: "At that time, Manchester United took a goal kick and I asked the referee ' What happened? 'The referee said the game was over, so when Onana kicked off I said to myself 'Damn, we did it. '"
"I was so happy for the win, and then I realized that Son, who had been at the club for so long, had finally done it, so I went over to congratulate him after everything they had gone through. It's the best feeling of my life and I keep thinking about it even this season because I want to have that feeling again in football when you do it, it's such a crazy feeling."
Solanke helped England win the U20 World Cup and was voted the best player of the tournament. At the end of that year, he earned his first senior cap under Southgate in an England friendly against Brazil. After that, however, he had to wait seven years for his second appearance.
He said about this: "Sometimes, it's hard to understand why, but I always believed that when I found my feet again, I would go back there. My career has not been smooth sailing. I was at Liverpool when I was first called up, and then went to Bournemouth. I loved my time there and they gave me the opportunity to learn, grow and show myself. I feel that when I have those playing minutes and goal scoring achievements "My move to Tottenham made me feel like I was back, and it was a long time coming, but I finally got back to the England team and now I want to stay there." Solanke has made three appearances for England but has yet to make an appearance under Tuchel. He was included in the squad in March, but only as a substitute.
Solanke said: "Another reason I'm so frustrated is that this is a World Cup year and everyone wants to show why they deserve to go to the World Cup. Three international match days have passed this season and I haven't been able to participate in any of them. It's difficult, but that's part of football."