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Robert Koren could hardly swim to save himself before he arrived in Australia.
But two ill-timed calf strains and 10 weeks on the sidelines – demoralising hard-bitten Melbourne City fans – has left the frustrated Slovenian international a near champion in the pool.
However City’s marquee man isn’t not so sure whether he should dive in at the deep end on Boxing Day by starting against A-League leaders Perth Glory at AAMI Park.
After pushing himself too hard to return for the Melbourne derby in round three and reaggravating his calf injury, Koren is taking a more cautious approach second time around.
The 34-year-old former English Premier League midfielder made a vibrant 30-minute return off the bench in the weekend’s 1-0 triumph over Melbourne Victory.
But he’s learning his lessons. After missing a further seven weeks due to his desire to play the first Melbourne derby, Koren is happy to leave the decision in the hands of coach John van ‘t Schip.
“I still need to catch up to the fitness level but I’m working very hard every day and I’m happy to be back,” the ex-Hull City and West Bromwich Albion playmaker said.
“When you’re coming so close it’s hard to be patient. In the last week the medical staff and the coaching staff did a good job to hold me back a bit because I was getting really frustrated.”
After initially straining his calf in the last week of pre-season, Koren often cut a lone figure in his rehab, but it was a process that saw him unleash his frustrations with the boxing gloves and also churn out numerous laps in the pool.
“It was really hard,” he said. “It was a long period.
“I learned how to swim now, finally, so I can swim really good.”
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