'i Signed Barcelona Deal - Then Had A Stroke At 24'

As England and Barcelona goalkeeper Ellie Roebuck sips her level achromatic successful nan Spanish sunshine extracurricular her favourite java shop, she looks for illustration a subordinate who has nan world astatine her feet.

But this is simply a very different image from 12 months ago.

Last February she was told that, astatine nan property of 24, she had suffered a stroke and was near fearing she would ne'er play shot again.

"I'm fortunate because I should person mislaid my vision," she tells BBC Sport. "I should person mislaid my peripheral imagination for sure. The mostly of group that suffer a changeable [like mine] do that. So, I astir apt should person been blind, which is rather a occurrence that that didn't happen."

Roebuck was portion of nan Lionesses squad that won nan Euros successful 2022 and reached nan World Cup last successful nan summertime of 2023. But nan erstwhile Manchester City keeper could ne'er person predicted that six months aft that lucifer successful Sydney, her world would beryllium turned upside down.

This is Roebuck's communicative - 1 of sport's singular comebacks.

After returning from World Cup work successful Australia, Roebuck's play did not spell to scheme astatine Manchester City – a nine she had been astatine since nan property of 15, making her debut arsenic a teen successful 2016.

The Sheffield-born keeper recovered herself stiff retired of nan first squad and did not make an quality successful nan first half of nan season, but she was besides struggling disconnected nan pitch.

It was astir Christmas 2023 erstwhile Roebuck first started to consciousness for illustration thing was "not rather right", though she could not activity retired what it was.

She felt nauseous, dizzy, fatigued, a spot disconnected equilibrium and her eyesight started to beryllium affected pinch achromatic dots impairing her vision.

A shot had deed nan backmost of her caput successful training, thing different for a goalkeeper, truthful her symptoms were put down to that.

She was treated for concussion astatine her nine but arsenic January progressed Roebuck was definite it had to beryllium thing else.

"I knew it wasn't concussion," she said. "I've had concussion. I conscionable knew thing wasn't right. I said 'for my bid of mind I request a caput scan, thing is not correct and I cognize it'."

When she sewage nan telephone from nan nine expert a mates of days aft nan scan asking her to travel successful immediately, she knew it was not going to beryllium bully news.

"It filled maine pinch panic, but I ne'er had successful my mind that it was a stroke.

"He sat maine down and was like, 'you've had an infarct successful your near occipital lobe'. I asked 'what's that successful English?' And past he said it was a type of stroke."

A changeable happens erstwhile nan humor proviso to portion of nan encephalon is trim off. That tin lead to paralysis and successful immoderate cases, death. The occipital lobe is nan ocular processing area of nan encephalon and a changeable successful this area tin origin an array of ocular impairments.

Roebuck adds: "My first mobility was 'am I going to play shot again?'"

At nan clip no-one could springiness her an answer, and nan timing could not person been worse arsenic nan test came conscionable 2 weeks aft she had formalised her exit from Manchester City by signing a pre-contract pinch European champions Barcelona, earlier a move successful nan summer.

But she quickly realised her worries went beyond shot arsenic she was sent consecutive from her assignment to mishap and emergency for treatment.

"I was sat successful A&E pinch each nan group connected a Thursday nighttime that'd been retired drinking. They'd travel successful pinch their cuts and bruises and I was conscionable sat location [thinking] 'what is happening?' And past I sewage taken to nan changeable ward which was thing that I'd ne'er really want to remember.

"You're successful location pinch group that I thought were 'normal people' to person strokes - older people. It was conscionable a crazy experience."

Because tests showed her changeable appeared to person happened 3 to 4 weeks earlier, location was small nan infirmary could do and she was sent location that night.

"The nurses said you can't transportation shopping for six weeks. You can't do immoderate exercise. I thought, 'I'm a master footballer, I can't do that'."

Roebuck was not allowed to train for 12 weeks and was near to prime up nan pieces, trying to fig retired what had caused nan changeable and perpetually fearing it would hap again.

"I wouldn't locomotion my canine for for illustration six weeks. I wouldn't time off nan house. I was frightened to do thing connected my own. And that was ne'er me, I was ever ace independent. My mum and dada were doing shifts of surviving pinch maine successful my one-bedroom level successful Manchester."

She underwent galore tests successful bid to find retired nan origin of what had happened and yet a mini spread successful her bosom was discovered.

"[It] sounds crazy, but I was grateful that I had a spread successful my bosom because I'd recovered my logic and I knew that it could beryllium closed and I could move on. I was almost excited that I was going successful for bosom surgery."

In room nan spread was identified nevertheless a membrane had formed and doctors believed it had closed up by itself which near Roebuck disappointment again arsenic it meant she would ne'er afloat understand what caused her stroke.

"You've almost sewage to deliberation you've been fixed a 2nd chance, but I'm besides truthful angry that it happened, because I deliberation 'why?'"

With a dream move to European heavyweights Barcelona connected nan line, Roebuck initially kept nan news of her information from her City team-mates.

She admits it was a lonely time, but she recovered support from 2 sportsmen who had been done akin experiences.

One was NFL Superbowl victor Tedy Bruschi, who had 2 strokes during his career. The different was erstwhile Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech, who suffered a superior caput wounded during a crippled successful 2006.

"I had a telephone pinch him for astir 2 hours and it was amazing. Although it wasn't straight nan same, it was personification I could subordinate to going done a akin thing.

"He touched connected things that cipher other got. No matter really galore times I tried to definitive myself, I couldn't. Nobody could subordinate to what I was going through.

"He is now a bully friend of mine. He came to watch maine train nan different time successful Barcelona. So, location are positives to travel retired of it - nan caller relationships I've formed."

Roebuck did not play for Manchester City again aft her changeable but she was capable to complete her dream move to Barcelona successful nan summer.

Yet she says nan measurement her last play was handled astatine a nine wherever she made much than 100 appearances near her assurance "diminished".

"I conscionable felt for illustration possibly my narration pinch nan head [Gareth Taylor] sewage fractured.

"I don't cognize whether that was me, possibly not proceeding nan clear connection aliases nan truth that location conscionable wasn't clear communication.

"I sewage my caput down and I conscionable tried to activity each day, but I deliberation it was a severely managed situation. I've ever been professional. I conscionable felt for illustration nan respect wasn't reciprocated successful that aforesaid sense."

Roebuck says that while she was "devastated" to time off City, it made joining Barcelona, who person won 3 of nan past 4 Champions League titles, a very easy decision.

However, she admits that her first training convention pinch nan nine aft six months retired was a batch much difficult than she anticipated.

"After coming backmost from having a encephalon wounded and past saying you've sewage to dive astatine someone's feet, it's not nan prettiest. But I had to get done it.

"Barcelona showed spot successful maine and for me, that was much important than anybody saying you tin person a starting role. It's nan truth they showed assurance successful me, and they wanted maine present and they want to amended me.

"The girls are amazing. The apical 3 Ballon d'Or nominees are each successful this changing room and it was a daze really bully everybody is, it's crazy to me. I've ne'er been a portion of a squad different than nan England squad that's for illustration this.

"So, for maine it's a cleanable fresh and I bask going successful each day."

Now 25, Roebuck made her Barca debut successful December successful a 4-1 triumph complete Real Betis, 303 days aft her test and much than 18 months since her past appearance.

"Everyone expected maine to beryllium nervous, but I felt good nan infinitesimal I stepped retired there. That's nan benignant of nan mantra I'm going for, each clip I get that opportunity, I conscionable want to bask it."

Roebuck says that while she thinks astir nan changeable each time and still battles symptoms for illustration fatigue, she is very overmuch focused connected nan future. And that besides now includes her java legume roasting company.

"I consciousness for illustration I worth life a batch more. I was stuck successful a existent rhythm of reasoning shot was everything.

"And I deliberation for that play of clip wherever I didn't cognize if I could beryllium a footballer, it made maine realise, you person to find thing else. And that was difficult because my full characteristic was Ellie nan footballer.

"I didn't cognize if I was going play again truthful it was conscionable a awesome measurement to transmission my power and person that attraction to distract myself. It's a cleanable measurement to commencement and yet hopefully 1 time nan purpose is to person a java shop.

"The biggest struggle is becoming a normal quality again but luckily I've astir been capable to do that."

Roebuck, who has 11 England caps, says representing nan Lionesses has ever been nan "highest privilege" successful her profession but that her comeback whitethorn person travel excessively precocious for a callback successful clip for this summer's Euros.

"It's difficult because that's thing that's not successful my hands arsenic such. Nothing is given. I cognize that's not an easy journey. And I cognize that I request to beryllium playing consistently week in, week out, but for maine it's much than that, it's a travel that I'm on.

"Now I'm prioritising nan things that are astir important, and that's being nan champion goalkeeper I tin perchance be."