Kulusevski reveals 'hardest day of my life' amid Tottenham injury hell

Kulusevski returned to action after 18 months out with a patella injury, calling Tottenham's Europa League final win 'one of the hardest days' of his life as he watched from the sidelines.

Dejan Kulusevski has opened up about the emotional toll of missing Tottenham's Europa League final victory over Manchester United in Bilbao while recovering from a serious patella injury.

The Swedish winger suffered the injury on the final day of the 2024-25 season in a collision with Crystal Palace's Marc Guehi and missed the entirety of the following campaign. He has only recently returned to action, making a substitute appearance in Spurs' 3-1 win over Coventry City and a late cameo in the 2-0 victory at Chelsea.

Kulusevski revealed the emotional difficulty of attending the Europa League final on crutches, unable to even collect his medal due to the slippery podium. He told Spurs' official media: "That was one of the hardest days in my life. It was so beautiful to see all the people happy, but it was very difficult for me." The isolation of watching the team celebrate on the bus while unable to travel back with them proved to be the most challenging part of his recovery journey. He is now targeting a place in Roberto De Zerbi's starting XI as Spurs look to climb the Premier League table.