Why Hearts star Marcus Godinho fears nothing after battling back from three knee operations

If resilience and defiance alone took you to the top in football, Marcus Godinho would be captaining Real Madrid.

Three successive cartilage operations haven’t curtailed the Hearts defender who, at 21, is already entitled to feel he can handle anything.

The edge to Godinho’s mindset is evident both in conversation and in his play. Saturday saw him complete a full 90 minutes for the first time since his most recent surgery. He has been over the recovery course before and knows it only too well.

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The Canadian’s strength of character has already been tested to the absolute maximum despite his limited senior football experience. Some players go through an entire 20-year career without a cartilage operation, yet Godinho has undergone three separate surgeries in that area.

Marcus GodinhoMarcus Godinho
Marcus Godinho

This time he feels stronger and better prepared to kickstart his Hearts career in earnest. The weekend win against Motherwell ended an exasperating seven-game winless run for the Edinburgh club. Godinho hopes it also becomes a personal landmark.

“It’s been tough. I still don’t feel fully up to speed but I feel I’m getting better with each game,” said the full-back. “Saturday was very hard because it was my first 90 minutes since the injury. I was really dying out there.

“As soon as everything starts coming together, I’m constantly put back. I’m never going to give up. I always had that determination that I would get back into the team at Hearts. It’s a big relief and I’m really happy I’ve managed to get through it all and get back to this point.

“The last operation was my third. They are all related. I just need to manage the knee but this is the best it has felt, to be honest. Since the first and second operations, it has never felt like this. I haven’t had any real problems with the knee, so now it’s just about working on physical fitness and getting on the ball.

“My last op was the same as the second one. I don’t know whether it’s down to strength because I feel a lot stronger in my body. My rehab was a bit different so I don’t know if that helped or if everything has just settled down. I’m not 100 per cent sure. I haven’t had any fluid and not much pain, so everything is looking positive.”

Godinho will now pray for a more settled period after the tumultuous time he has endured since joining Hearts in summer 2016. He explained the kind of single-mindedness he indulged in to force his way back into first-team contention.

“Obviously, every time you get injured you are in a bad place for a little bit. I feel like coming back this time was actually easier because I’ve done it twice before.

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“I just put my head down. I had the mentality that I would do whatever it took to get back playing. That was it. I kept working every day, never really thought of the negatives, just took it day by day. Then I got to the day when I was back on the pitch.

“I’ve always been the kind of kid that, no matter how bad things get or how difficult the situation in, I’m always going to push. I’m always going to give it my all and try to get through. If I can’t do it, I’ll die trying. That’s my mentality.”

It is an outlook which clearly appeals to the Hearts manager, Craig Levein, who is one of Godinho’s many admirers. It is also the kind of attitude any footballer needs to thrive, particularly in Scotland.

Godinho’s determination to overcome setbacks has propelled him back into the starting line-up at Tynecastle Park as a hectic spell of fixtures begins.

Hearts travel to Livingston this Friday, then Aberdeen the following week before hosting Hamilton and taking on rivals Hibs at Easter Road near the end of the month. Then comes a well-earned winter break and some warm-weather training in Murcia, southern Spain.

After halting their recent alarming run of form, Friday’s trip to West Lothian offers the chance to build on the platform.

“We will be going there looking for the win,” insisted Godinho. “We have to continue the run now and keep picking up points. It’s up to us. Every team is tough in this league and it will be a physical game at Livingston. We know that. If we start moving the ball well, press well and put in a shift, then it will be in our hands no matter what.

“It has been a tough few games. I thought we should have won at St Johnstone last week but we were unlucky. The boys came out and did well on Saturday. The guys were frustrated from last week but we used that frustration to help us.

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“I felt everyone came out wanting to win, no matter how hard it was going to be or whether things went for us or against us, we were going to win. The boys used their frustration to push that little bit extra.”

Godinho nearly claimed his first Hearts goal with a deep cross near the end of the first half which almost deceived the Motherwell goalkeeper Mark Gillespie. “I thought it was going in. I was surprised he made the save, although it was a good save. I’ve just got to keep trying. I’m sure a goal will come eventually.”

He isn’t expected to score from right-back, although lining up at right wing-back – as he did at the weekend – provides the chance to get further forward.

“Both right-back and right wing-back, I don’t really know if I have a preference. Maybe right wing-back when I’m fully fit,” he laughed. “Getting up and down and getting into higher positions needs energy but I’m happy in any of those roles.

“The manager has been really good with me. I know he believes in me and that gives me added confidence. I have that desire to work even harder for him to prove his belief in me is justified.”

Having successfully negotiated so many hurdles, there remains one left in front of the young defender. He made his Canada debut in March this year and, fitness permitting, will be playing for an international recall between now and the spring.

“We have games coming up in February and March. We’ve also qualified for the Gold Cup next June so I’ll be looking to get involved with that if I’m fully fit.”