Troy Deeney recounted his horrendous Covid-19 ordeal which left him seriously ill and hospitalised for four days in a hard-hitting column piece for The Sun.
The Birmingham City striker was struck down with the virus while at Watford, after coming down with the disease following the Hornets' Premier League clash with Crystal Palace.
"I spent four days in hospital on a ventilator, suffering from Covid, in the spring of 2020," he explained.
"I was quite seriously ill with this virus, having struggled for breath during Watford's last match before lockdown against Crystal Palace and I ended up being hospitalised."
Deeney did not return to training for two weeks after the Premier League's 'Project Restart' got underway in June last year, and the striker was vocal in highlighting the safety concerns on behalf of the players.
But stressed he now feels much safer going to work and highlighted the much more vigorous testing regimes which are in place at all clubs.
"I am double-jabbed now and I feel far safer. At Birmingham, we're being tested for Covid three times a week and in the Premier League they are under an even stricter regime," he added.
"But I have no qualms about having been sceptical and about demanding the full facts before Project Restart happened in June last year.
"I had some full and frank discussions with Dr Jonathan Van-Tam, England's deputy chief medical officer, after he was detailed to explain to players how Project Restart would work.
"I challenged him on some aspects and I think he appreciated the debates we had."
The 33-year-old also spoke about vaccine hesitancy in football, and how players should not be demonised for choosing not to be jabbed.
"Footballers will continue to have differing views on vaccines, just like everyone else does.
"We can continue to try to reason with those people who are reluctant to get the vaccine.
"But I'm not in favour of shaming or shunning footballers, or any other people, who have made a choice not to be jabbed."
What do you make of Deeney's views? Do you think all players should be vaccinated?
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Watford, Premier League, Birmingham City, Troy Deeney