Taylor: Roord ‘way ahead of schedule’ in ACL recovery | OneFootball

Gareth Taylor says Jill Roord’s professionalism and trust has significantly sped up her return to action in a City shirt.

The Dutch international has been ruled out since rupturing her Anterior Cruciate Ligament in January 2024.

Roord was expected to return around the new year, but her progress means Taylor hinted at her being closer to selection in the coming weeks.

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The boss was full of praise for the midfielder and her attitude in making that a possibility.

He said of Roord’s recovery: “[She’s] Very close. I think certainly we’ll see in the next week to 10 days, this cluster of games we’ve got, we’ll start to see her being close.

“She’s been training with us now for a while. She looks really good and confident.

“We have good competition in those areas that she plays in and she’ll help the squad massively in what will hopefully be a busy season. Having a player back like Jill is class for a coach like me.

“I have to say her level of professionalism and her level of trust in how we do things when she was fit and also with the medical team and the plan for her, you can see that she's back way ahead of schedule.

“That comes down a lot to what she's about. I can't speak highly enough of her.”

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Sunday’s WSL opener against Arsenal sees Roord’s fellow Dutch international Vivianne Miedema line up against her former employers.

The forward enjoyed an incredible seven years in North London, twice winning the league’s Golden Boot as well as the WSL title in 2019.

But Miedema made the switch to City this summer and marked her competitive debut with a goal as we beat Paris FC 5-0 in a UEFA Champions League qualifier.

Taylor expects the Dutch international to receive an outstanding reception from both sets of fans at the Emirates Stadium but knows Miedema won’t be affected by the occasion.

“What Viv has done will help her a lot confidence-wise. We’re really happy with her regardless of scoring or not, she brings a lot to the team,” the boss said of her debut goal.

“She has good players around her which helps. We just need to give her the necessary time to settle into this Club having been at another club for a long period.

“Just keep it simple. It’s the easiest thing to say, I understand. I never played for a club as long as Viv did, but I knew how I felt when I went back to particular clubs with a strong affection.

“I understand everything that goes on with that. Viv isn't unique, we have many players who revisit their former clubs. I’m pretty sure she will get an outstanding ovation and deserves it.

“But for us it’s about controlling the controllables. Once that whistle goes, there’s a game of football and that’s where she really steps into her own.

“It’s about keeping it simple and playing the game not the occasion.”