Kulusevski Was “Disappointed in People” While Out for 526 Days

• Dejan Kulusevski said he was disappointed in people while he spent 526 days out with a serious knee injury, and that he has to forgive everything.
• He turned down a knee transplant that could have meant another 18 months out, and advice from Zlatan Ibrahimovic sent him to a specialist in Serbia.
• Tottenham declined to comment on his remarks, per The Mirror.

Back With Sweden and Speaking Out

Dejan Kulusevski is back in the Sweden squad for the first time in two years, and he has spoken to Swedish reporters about the 526 days he went without an appearance for Spurs. The 26-year-old midfielder began with this.

“I have been disappointed in people during this period but at the same time I have to forgive everything,” Kulusevski said.

Forgiveness and a Business

He went on: “It is also written in the Bible. That is how I have moved on. It is difficult for all people. Unfortunately, we look after our own interests first, often. It has been a tough period because sometimes you wish you had received more help and such.”

“But at the same time I understand that we are all part of a ‘business’. I have moved on and I love being at the club. I received a very good welcome when I came back.”

He named neither Tottenham nor any individual. Tottenham declined to comment on the subject.

526 Days and a Medical Overhaul

The injury came in a seemingly innocuous challenge with Marc Guehi in a 2-0 home defeat to Crystal Palace in the spring of 2025. He was ruled out at first with what was described as a knock, and his absence stayed a mystery to Spurs fans. The damage was to his right patella and the cartilage within it, and two operations failed to fix it.

He returned last month in the 3-1 win over Coventry City on 19 October, his first competitive minutes after the 2024/25 season. Three more appearances off the bench have followed. Spurs overhauled their medical department this summer after serious knee injuries to Kulusevski, James Maddison, Wilson Odobert and Xavi Simons.

“The answer to why it took so long is that there are people who have never even come back from injuries like this,” he added. “Above all, we should be happy that it was possible to come back.”

“There are many who have stopped playing their sport due to cartilage damage. Why it took so long is that we don’t know more.”

“We did what we thought was best and it didn’t work. After that we had to try another operation. Then many people were nervous when they realised that it didn’t seem to work either.”

The Transplant He Turned Down

He spent the summer in talks about another operation. “I had to sit all summer and talk to other doctors about having another operation. It would be a knee transplant. That I had replaced my knee with someone else’s.”

“Then I said no: ‘We’ll do it like this, if I have pain when I play, I have to play with pain’. I trained and tried to live like a normal person. I trusted that it would work out. So far I’ve been right.”

Saying yes could have meant potentially another 18 months out. “Nobody has ever come back from that, it’s 50/50’,” he said. “I was like: ‘No, I don’t want to take it’.”

Sweden legend Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Ivan Perisic pointed him to a specialist in Serbia. “Zlatan and (Ivan) Perisic wanted me to go there. I went there, and the Serb was important to me.”

“He said: ‘Don’t think about other operations, we’re going to do this’. He was so sure of himself that it would work. I needed someone by my side who told me: ‘Dejan, this will work’.”

He said: “Every day I tried to find out the answer, I couldn’t understand.”

“But when we found out, it was complicated and not easy to solve. In the end, I got incredible help from many people involved.”

“It’s really not just one person who helped me, I still work with maybe eight people today. There are many people who helped me.”

“It was the nervous system, it was more than an injury. A deep, deep expertise from someone who is really good with the body and could resolve traumatised situations that happened to the body (helped) and after that the pain went away.”

“It hurt so much to walk up stairs,” he said. “I trained ten hours a day but it didn’t work, it didn’t matter what I did. Then I started thinking: ‘If it’s over, it’s over’.”

“So I had to tell my mother: ‘I don’t think it’s going to work’. To prepare her and the family. But in those days, things changed. And then when things got better, I felt like I could handle it.”

He added: “There were many who didn’t believe it, many were sceptical. Even at the club.”

“But in the end I showed that I was getting better and stronger. And convinced them too.”

“Whoever said I wouldn’t come back doesn’t know me. You could use that (talk) as fuel. But I believed in myself.”

Potter Plans to Use Him Carefully

Graham Potter, the Sweden manager, will handle Kulusevski with care, as he has made only substitute appearances for Tottenham this season. “We are of course in contact with Tottenham, and it is logical that we work closely with them,” Potter said. “They have worked with Dejan for so long to get him back to the level he is at now.”

“Therefore, it is reasonable that we have a close dialogue. We have a pretty good idea of how we can use him. But the most important thing for us is that he is here.”

Roberto De Zerbi has defended the medical staff over a long injury list. What comes next is on the pitch: how many minutes he gets for Tottenham, and whether the knee holds.