Martin Braithwaite's hasty return leaves him still waiting

Martin Braithwaite is in an uncomfortable situation. The Danish striker has been out for nearly five months after an operation on his knee. He returned against Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Rey and played 12 minutes. However Luuk de Jong and the arrival of more strikers in the transfer window make it hard for Braithwaite to get minutes, although the reality is that his lack of protagonism comes mainly from the fact that he is not yet 100% fit.

After surgery Braithwaite started to work to get back as quickly as he could. When Ronald Koeman was sacked and Xavi arrived the coach saw the attacker as a potential option and gave him his confidence that he would use him when he was back. Braithwaite left that conversation with a lot of conviction that he could be useful for the coach this season. It provided extra energy in his search for recovery.

He finally made it back onto the pitch on January 20 as a substitute against Athletic but has not appeared since. He has always been in the squad list but has not participated. The various winter signings including Ferran Torres, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Adama Traoré plus Luuk de Jong in a great state of form, have cost him minutes however Braithwaite is still working to find his top level of fitness and when he does he knows he can still be useful.