When Patrick Bamford came off injured against Newcastle in September, he asked when the next international break would be.
The ankle injury that ruled him out of England's next two camps and two months of league action was severe.
The best year to date in his career was probably the one that was killed by it, but that is not the only goal for Bamford.
The results of the games by Leeds.
The impact on every club.
"If I hadn't got called up, I would have said it was a good year," he said. I probably wouldn't have said it was my best year to date.
Making his England debut was the cherry on top for Bamford.
The England cap was the cherry on top because it was something that I've worked towards since I first got called up for England.
It was something that I wanted to achieve. I really want to push to get back in that camp now that I have had a taste of it.
Injury problems and World Cup ambition.
Despite it being his best year yet, injury has made 2021 a frustrating one for Bamford. He returned to action in November after two months out with a last-minute goal against Brentford. He left the stadium with a pulled leg.
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Bamford saved a point for Leeds in a game on December 5.
The 28-year-old is close to a return and is itching to get back on the field with the World Cup less than a year away.
He wants to get back involved in the England set-up.
The World Cup at the end of the year is an added incentive. It's up to me to prove my worth again.
The injury crisis in Yorkshire is not heard of.
He knows that he will have to recreate his club form of last season, when he scored 17 goals and seven assists in 38 league appearances, to have a chance of catching the eye of England's coach. It won't be an easy task, though, as the club flirts with the drop and tries to piece together a squad.
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Highlights from the last game of the season, which was at home to the Gunners.
They have lost four and drawn three of their last five matches, but are confident they will stay up.
The amount of injuries is not known. It's really bad luck that for them all to happen at the same time, but maybe in one season you'll expect to get that amount of injuries.
"I think that in the next few weeks, you'll see a lot stronger team and a lot stronger squad because people are coming back." Kalvin and Liam are a little bit longer, but I think we'll be fine.
It has been difficult to put the same starting XI out for two games in a row.
It's hard to get your head around the festive schedule.
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Some teams only get 48 hours recovery time over Christmas, and that's not right.
The injury has kept him out of the lineup over the festive period, but he has not missed a beat, as the games against Villa andLiverpool were called off.
The issue of player welfare has been raised by the rise in Covid cases in the league, with the issue of teams playing 48 hours after the Boxing Day games being raised by the manager of the team.
Minor changes to the calendar at Christmas could make a big difference.
"Everyone likes playing games to training, without a shadow of a doubt," said Bamford.
I like playing on Boxing Day. It's annoying when you're in a hotel on Christmas Day, but I like the game on Boxing Day.
I don't think it makes sense to play on the 28th and the 26th, just move that one to the 29th, and then it's like a normal Saturday-Tuesday game then.
It is what it is, but it can be hard to get your head around.
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You can find out how you can get involved by watching this video.
Patrick Bamford's Christmas raffle has raised more than $13,000 for The Leeds United Foundation, Andy's Man Club and Eco Schools, so find out how you can get involved here to win a bunch of prizes.
