Young Toronto FC striker Ayo Akinola says he is "not too far" from returning to action from surgery last August to repair an anterior cruciate ligament injured on international duty with Canada.
"I'm doing everything the trainers and medical staff ask me to do," said Akinola. "I don't try to overstep or do anything or go above my boundaries. I just do what I need to do each day. And just go on to the next day.
"But overall it's been pretty good."
Akinola is currently with the team in Texas as it prepares for the Feb. 26 MLS season opener at FC Dallas. He is taking part in the team warmups but is not part of regular training. The hope is he will be back playing in April or May.
While the knee continues to recover, Akinola's mind is clearly in the right place.
"I chose a positive and a strong-willed mindset, that I know I will come back from this even better and stronger," he said in an interview.
He says he was "in shock" when he found out he had torn his ACL.
"But literally a minute later I was in the mode of like 'OK, it is what it is. I can't do anything about it. So let's just see how we can get this done and over with and then get back on the field.'"
Akinola said he spent "24-7" at the TFC training centre in the off-season.
One of his first calls was to teammate Ifunanyachi Achara, who also went through knee surgery and helped answer a lot of his questions.
Akinola, who announced himself with five goals in two games at the 2020 MLS is Back Tournament, has signed a new contract with Toronto that runs through 2024 with an option for 2025. News of the deal came Jan. 20 on his 22nd birthday.
Akinola's existing contract expired at the end of 2021.
"When I was out of contract I definitely explored all my options in Europe and MLS. And I wanted to see what suited me best at this moment in time," he said.
He chose to stay with Toronto "because they've been working with me on my ACL from the beginning, so they know what's it's like."
"They were in absolutely no rush to get me back … Just knowing the medical staff and (my) history with them, I knew I was at ease," he added.
He also saw the club making moves to improve under new coach Bob Bradley.
"With all the new players that are coming in and players moving out, this is becoming like a new Toronto," he said. "I thought it would be great for me to be part of this chapter, this new era of Toronto."
Staying close to home, and his mother and brother, was also a factor. "Mentally it just helped me even more with the injury that I'm dealing with."
The Toronto fans were also "a big key as to why I stayed," he said. "Just for the simple fact (that) they'll give out their heart and soul, every game."
He is looking forward to playing in front of them again, given how the pandemic restricted play and attendance at BMO Field the last two years.
Akinola's new contract is part of the MLS U22 Initiative which allows clubs to sign up to three young players, age 22 and younger, to "lucrative contracts at a reduced budget charge.''
Players can occupy the U22 Initiative slot through the season they turn 25. Akinola is eligible as a homegrown player on his second contract.
Under league rules, the maximum a homegrown player can earn under the U22 program is US$200,000 above the maximum salary budget charge (which was $612,500 last year). Akinola made US$157,513 last season.
His salary budget charge will be US$200,000 this year but he will make more than that.
"We have seen glimpses the last two seasons of just how impactful Ayo can be and it's exciting to think of what's still to come for him as a TFC player," Toronto president Bill Manning said in a statement at the time.
Akinola was restricted to just 11 regular-season appearances with three goals last season after injuring his knee in July during Canada's 1-0 loss to the U.S. at the CONCACAF Gold Cup. It was his first start in Canadian colours.
Akinola, who joined TFC as a homegrown player in December 2017, has made a combined 46 appearances across all competitions with 14 goals. His breakthrough year was in 2020 when he scored a team-high nine goals in 15 games.
Born in Detroit, Akinola moved to Canada when he was one.
He represented the U.S. at youth level from 2015 to 2019 and made one appearance with the senior team before switching allegiance to Canada. He scored in his lone appearance for the U.S., a 6-0 win over El Salvador, but was not cap-tied since the match was a friendly.
He made his Canadian debut off the bench against Haiti at last year's Gold Cup.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 9, 2022
Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press
