Izzy Brown's summer move to Preston North End was supposed to be a fresh start for the ex-Chelsea midfielder, but it soon turned into a nightmare scenario.
Over the years the 24-year-old has been on a number of different loan spells to EFL clubs and also in the Premier League with Brighton & Hove Albion, but he's faced numerous injury setbacks which started at the Seagulls when he ruptured his ACL.
He spent more times on the sidelines at Leeds United but spells at Luton and Sheffield Wednesday saw him fit more often than not, although his period with the Owls was ultimately an unsuccessful one which saw him draw the ire of fans for some of his performances.
Brown was hoping to prove himself at Deepdale after penning a permanent deal this summer, but just days after featuring in a pre-season outing against Celtic, disaster struck in training as he ruptured his achilles in a freak accident.
He underwent surgery to fix the damage not long after but the stark reality of the injury is that Brown is unlikely to kick a ball this season - but the player himself has offered a promising update.
Brown is seemingly back on the move again less than two months after going under the knife, and he's now back at walking pace on a treadmill.
He won't be kicking a ball for another few months but it's a step in the right direction as Brown looks to make it back before the season's end.
The Verdict
It would be a massive personal victory for Brown if he were to make it back onto the pitch before the end of the 2021-22 campaign.
Ruptured achilles' can take a varying amount of time to heal - North End already suffered from a bad dose of one of them last season when Patrick Bauer when down at the start of December.
The German was back for pre-season though which meant it was an eight-month lay-off, so the best case scenario could see Brown back by March.
But with his injury history no risks are likely to be taken with his health but everyone has their fingers crossed that he pulls on a PNE shirt this season at some point in 2022 - this is the first positive step on his road to recovery.