Victor Wanyama has says his time spent out injured earlier this season was the lowest period of his career.

The Tottenham midfielder spent the majority of the first half of the 2017-18 campaign on the sidelines due to a knee problem picked up in pre-season.

The former Southampton midfielder is yet to make a Premier League start since his return from injury, but could be on the team sheet when he returns to St. Mary’s on Sunday.

During his time out, Spurs have faced a few tough moments at Wembley but have also enjoyed a historic Champions League campaign, beating both Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund in London - and Wanyama says it’s been a dark time for him personally.

"Being injured as a footballer teaches you many things about yourself but nothing more so than if you have your health then you have your wealth," he told the Daily Mail.

"Money and all the trappings of being a footballer mean nothing unless you have your health and fitness.

"This has been a dark time for me. When Tottenham played Real Madrid at Wembley and I had to watch... I wanted to play so badly, it was probably the lowest point of my career."

Having picked up the problem on a pre-season trip, the midfielder tried to play on but, after 90 minutes in the 2-1 defeat to Chelsea, realised it was not possible.

The 28-year-old, though, revealed that while it was a long path back, his teammates in the physio room and a couple of those match-fit helped him through.

He added: "The medical team took a good look and, along with the specialist opinion, it was decided that treatment rather than surgery was the best way forward.

"From there it was frustrating. I started the season coming on against Newcastle then I played a full game against Chelsea but it hadn’t settled as I hoped. I was so low, worrying about how long it would take.

"I'd go in for treatment then come home and ice the knee every two hours until 2am. I'd try to sleep but I was thinking too much, worrying. I'd get up about 8am then go in for treatment again at 9am or 10am.

"It wasn't an easy process but Mauricio Pochettino said to me: 'We don't want you to repeat this injury, be patient, we want you to recover properly, no risks'.

"It helped me focus. I put my head down to work. I'd see Danny Rose, Erik Lamela and Harry Winks who were injured too. Everyone has different programmes of recovery but we'd all try to keep each other positive.

"Jan Vertonghen, Kieran Trippier and ‘Sonny’ -Heung-min Son, he’s very funny - are the practical jokers in the team and they kept the atmosphere light."