Valencia missed five months of the season after suffering a broken and dislocated left ankle against Rangers in September.
“At first I thought my speed might decrease permanently but I spoke to the physio and he assured me I was going to make a complete recovery, which gave me a lot of confidence,” Valencia told The Sun.
“When I was injured I would sit at home watching the matches and think ‘If I were in that position, I’d do this or that’. Previously, the longest I’d been out was about three months and this was more than five months, so it was tough.
“But now I’m back at nearly 100 per cent and I’m happy to be involved in these big games. Training with the lads and playing at an exciting time of the season – it doesn’t get any better than that.
“Football is my whole life and perhaps I didn’t really appreciate that before the injury, or even while I was out. Now I enjoy every training session and every match.”
