Celtic outcast Yosuke Ideguchi admitted he hit 'rock bottom' on the Parkhead sidelines and thought he would even end his career.
The Japanese midfielder is back in his homeland on loan at Avispa Fukuoka after being frozen out at Celtic, after a frustrating spell in Glasgow.
He suffered an ankle break last week in one of his first games back and is expected to be out for three months.
But he has lifted the lid on the frustration he felt while he was out of the picture at Celtic and revealed the World Cup gave him the jolt he needed to revive his career.
He said: "To tell the truth, I was scared if I didn't start playing first team football again, my career would end.
"When I saw how Celtic played in the Scottish League, I thought it might be difficult for a player with a style of play like mine to survive, but I gained experience from it.
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"I was ready to go at the start of the season, but got another injury and it set me back.
"But the problem in Scotland is there are very few reserve matches. I felt I was training for the sake of training.
"For that reason, I asked to leave the club because I was out of the manager's plans and I wanted to be in a team where I was involved.
"Then the World Cup came and I was so inspired by watching it. I thought to myself, 'what am I doing stagnating here?'
"I was jealous and I vowed to try and get my career back.
"I was 26 and at rock bottom. I know to have any chance of making the Japan team for the next World Cup I have to play. So I returned to Japan with a lot of determination.
"Of course, it was incredibly frustrating and cruel to get another injury in one of my first games back in Japan, but I will definitely return to the pitch stronger.”
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