Gareth Ainsworth has re-engaged with Gillingham after several weeks away recovering from heart surgery.
Gills coach isn’t ready to return to the dugout just yet. However, he returned to supervise training and preparations for the Ligue 2 match. He missed all four league games in October.
“I’m happy to be back here,” he told Sky Sports. “This is me and this is a special club. They care about me and have really supported me during what has been a very testing period for me, my family and the team. Things are slowly getting better day by day, but I’m not on the touchline yet. This is my last hurray.”
“I still have to manage from the stands, but I’m making pre-game discussions, half-time discussions and a lot of decisions from the stands.
“I was involved in the strategy and selecting the starting team, but on game day I left the rest up to (assistant Richard Dobson) and the staff. We were a minute behind on the stream, so it was really hard to make a substitution from 130 miles away.”
“It’s frustrating, but it’s good to be back. What I think I’m missing is the energy that I project onto the pitch when I’m next to the players. They’ll see me head the ball with them, but that’s going to come.”
“I have completely recovered and am doing very well now.”
Ainsworth underwent a routine medical examination by the League Managers Association (LMA) in September, when it was discovered he had a heart murmur.
It was a fairly routine procedure, and Gills bosses say it was a great success. But he wants to raise awareness so that everyone possible can get regular testing.
“The great thing is that he’s now completely healed and has a great heart,” he says. “It was a valve problem, but they managed to repair my valve, so there’s nothing artificial. They said everything is good, arterially and cardiac-wise. So I’m just waiting for it to heal. Heart surgeries don’t happen every day, so I gave it time.”
“I don’t think you can take that touchline energy away from me. The surgeons at Southampton and the people at Spire were fantastic. They know I have a stressful job and they know I’m involved so they told me to be careful and use common sense.”
“I get short of breath sometimes and I sleep well. I want everyone to know how important the test is. If you have a test coming up, please go and talk to me. The test could have saved my life. Something terrible could have happened. Thank you to the LMA, the club and the surgeons for getting me back on track.”
“Anyway, I’ve always been good at looking at things objectively. I’ve been through a lot in life and in football. Football is the most important of the unimportant things. It’s all about health, family, friends and loved ones.”
“We get swept away by the waves of emotions, results, performances and strategies. Sometimes it’s great to sit back and ask ourselves if we’re okay. I’ve gotten a lot of messages from managers and fans. It’s been refreshing and it’s great to sit back and look at ourselves.”
“An impressive return to the stand”
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Sky Bet League Two match highlights between Bristol Rovers and Gillingham.
Last Saturday, Ainsworth played against Bristol Rovers as Gillingham clinched their first league win in six games. He was sitting in the stands with the club’s technical staff.
“It was more emotional because you could feel the emotion more than watching it on the couch,” he says. “The fans saw me on the gantry and started singing my name. Some of the players looked up and gave a fist pump because we were going to win and they knew where I was.”
“I can’t help but get emotional. That’s how I live my life and how I live my life on the touchline. That’s why I might need to step away from the touchline for a while. This game has given me a lot, but it’s also given me some big maneuvers and some big scares. I wouldn’t change that for the world.”
“Maybe the doctors are tired of me asking the same three questions: Can I go back to the gym, can I go back to singing, or can I get on the touchline? All three are weeks away, but I don’t know in which order they will come.
“As always when I’m in football management, the band has taken a backseat. We had a great year when I took time off work and played a lot of gigs, but because of my heart situation it’s now even more of a back burner. But I’m never going to say never. We’ll be playing shows again.”
“Now we get the result on Saturday and the next step is to get back on the touchline.”
