Celtic forward Leigh Griffiths has revealed that a previously undetected hip issue has caused the forward to not be at full fitness in recent seasons.
The 27-year-old shared that he had got a shock diagnosis from a specialist in England, that stated that an issue with his hips was causing him all his other injury issues.
“The calf problem was all to do with my hips,” said Griffiths, as quoted by the Scottish Sun.
“The specialist identified it straight away and looked at how we could rectify it, my hips were so blocked, that my calves and hamstrings were doing double the work.
“I wasn’t getting the full range of movement, that is why my calves were going either side, it wasn’t just one specific area. Both sides were going at different times.
“Hopefully, now that the hips have been released and the muscles are flowing again, I will be back sharper with more movement in my legs.”
Griffiths, who has been at Parkhead since 2014, opened up about how frustrating the last few years had been for him due to his injuries and how he was aiming to get back to his best.
“Hopefully working with the manager and fitness staff means, come pre-season, I’ll be flying and back to my best,” stated the centre-forward
“It’s been a frustrating few years, I’m feeling good, playing well, scoring goals and helping the team get three points, then suddenly, bang, they go and I’m out for three or four weeks at a time, it was a bit longer this time.
“But I am hoping that is it done now and I can move forward, hopefully I won’t have another problem again.”
The 27-year-old forward has appeared 177 times for the Hoops and scored an impressive 97 goals in his outings.
OPINION
It’s certainly impressive that Griffiths has managed to score as many goals as he has, considering his hips were causing him not to have full movement of his body. The 27-year-old went on to add in his interview that he is now fully fit and that Brendan Rodgers had told him that he looked sharp. This is fantastic news as a fit Griffiths is capable of helping the Hoops get success due to his eye for goal. However with his hip issues being undetected for so long, it’s a mystery how a specialist didn’t work out the issue earlier. Griffiths could have achieved so much more at Parkhead if he was able to be fully fit when playing, and it’s just shame that the issue caused him not be at his best for many seasons.