Abo Eisa raring to get his Shrewsbury Town career started

Eisa, who turns 23 in January, was sidelined with a knee injury for eight weeks but has been pushing for first-team action since returning to fitness.

The knee ligament damage, sustained in an accidental training collision, curtailed any hopes Eisa had of progressing under former boss John Askey.

Things had looked bleak for the Sudanese-born flyer under Askey, who had been keen to send the speedster out on loan.

It was a long way from the progress Eisa made at the back end of last season under Paul Hurst, where he got a taste for League One and showed his promise.

“If Paul Hurst was here then maybe I would’ve got a chance from the go (this season), but it’s football, it’s what happens,” said the winger.

“I understand it, it’s frustrating of course, but you have to move on.

“I’m trying to start my career at Shrewsbury properly because I don’t feel like it has got started.

“I’m sure if it does get started then it’ll be a good one.”

There is certainly no lack of support for Eisa from Shrewsbury fans.

He added: “It’s always nice playing for the fans and they’ve taken to me very well. I hope I can repay them by showing good performances and scoring goals.

“Last year I finished strongly. I thought I’d get the chance at the start of the season.

“Even though I’ve been away for a long time the fans still remember and on Twitter they send good messages and want me to play. That’s always a confidence booster.

“The last games (last season) was a chance to see if I can do it in League One.

“My performances were good so I thought I can do it. It gave me real confidence because I feel I can be a really good player.”

Eisa, who joined Town amid interest from last season’s League One champions Wigan, played just a minute of league football under Askey in the disastrous 3-0 defeat at Oxford.

Under the temporary leadership of Danny Coyne, the former Wealdstone youngster got a run-out and scored at Crewe in the Checkatrade Trophy, before a half-hour stint from the bench in the league at Wycombe.

There were some long and difficult days for Eisa on the road to recovery – but he is seeing the positives.

“It’s the first big injury that I had, so I was going through a mental challenge,” he said.

“But I say it’s a blessing in disguise because I feel stronger and better.

“You have to come in at 8.45am and finish at 3.30pm. It was every day, six days a week.

“It was a tough one. It was very hard coming back to fitness, I didn’t think that because I’m naturally fit, getting over those mental obstacles helped me grow as a player and a man.

“Hopefully I’ll be stronger and I feel stronger.”