ALI Abbas is desperate to play in what is looming as a bitter Sydney derby this weekend to prove to his critics that he has fully recovered from a devastating knee injury.

The Iraqi international made a fairytale return for Sydney FC against the Newcastle Jets on Saturday night.

Abbas, 30, spent more than a year on the sidelines as he recovered from his knee injury, but needed just nine minutes to put it all behind him when he scored the ­second and decisive goal in the Sky Blues’ 2-0 win over the Jets at ANZ Stadium on Saturday.

It was during the Sydney derby in November 2014 that Abbas tore his ACL after being tackled by ­Iacopo La Rocca.

He was then on the receiving end of relentless abuse from Wanderers fans. But that has made him more determined than ever to take part in the derby as he aims to prove his doubters wrong.

“(I want to play) so bad,” Abbas said. “I’m not concerned about the atmosphere (at Parramatta). I just want to go there, put everything behind me and try to have fun.

“People said, ‘You’ll never come back and be the same Ali as before’. That’s my motivation. People doubt me, they try to put me down, but that was motivation to me and hopefully I continue.

media_camera Ali Abbas of Sydney FC celebrates a goal. Picture: Mark Evans

‘‘I took my chance (against Newcastle) and I took my time. I would love to do it again.”

Sydney coach Graham Arnold believes Abbas has used the abuse from Wanderers fans as motivation throughout his lengthy rehabilitation process and for that is grateful to his city rivals.

“I think we should thank the Wanderers fans for motivating him to come back,” Arnold said. “If you go into our dressing room you’ll see the photos, step by step, of the ­horrific injury.

“Terry McFlynn (Sydney’s player welfare manager) printed out some of the things people said about him. He’s used it as motivation and that’s been the driving force for him coming back.”

Abbas described every day as “difficult” during his injury hell, but he’s confident he has come back as a better person. The emotion was raw when he ran over to embrace Sydney’s medical staff after he scored on Saturday night.

“I believe in myself,” he said. “If you’re a good person, good things will happen to you. That’s how I’ve been focusing on myself — to be a better person and footballer.

“That’s why I’ve been working on that and ­hopefully I will continue to work.

“I was so scared and excited at the same time to cross that line. As soon as I crossed it I forgot everything, just listened to what Arnie wanted from us as a team.

‘‘I think we’ve done a really good job and I was there to support my team and thank God everything went my way.”