LEE Angol has spotted the difference in Abo Eisa since the winger got the all-clear to train again.

“I see him looking a bit chubbier because he’s been out for so long!” is the light-hearted verdict from his Bantams “partner in crime”.

The pair have been almost joined at the hip since both arrived at Valley Parade last summer; not just because they live near each other but from the amount of time they have occupied casualty together.

Angol is playing again after his second long lay-off and confidently came through just over an hour’s work against Scunthorpe in his first start back.

For Eisa, the road to recovery has been even longer – a virtual season-long absence punctuated by a cruel false start ironically at last weekend’s opponents in November.

But he’s been back among it at training for a few weeks now as Mark Hughes contemplates whether to offer a brief run-out in the final knockings of the league campaign.

The City boss may opt for caution given how long Eisa has been out and wait properly for pre-season. Either way, Angol knows that his close pal is in a “good space” again.

“He’s already got a contract for next season so he knows he doesn’t have to rush back and try and impress the gaffer,” said Angol.

“He’s got the whole of next season to go out and do his thing. He’s a great player so he’s got nothing to worry about.

“Obviously, he’s been doing his thing in training.

“The club here care for everyone, they’ve been looking after him and getting him in the best position for himself. Whether he plays or not, they have helped him anyway.

“That’s what it’s all about. As long as you know you are being looked after properly in that situation then everyone will be all right.”

Angol knows better than anyone how well Eisa has been looked after. He has got to know the medical and sports science team almost too well having spent so much of the season on the treatment table.

He is also well aware of the mental strain that it can place on a player when they are ruled out for such a lengthy period.

“It’s not just the injury, we’re all footballers and we’re here to play matches,” he added.

“When you’re out injured and know you can’t play and you’ve got to watch the games, it’s more damaging mentally.

“The injury will just heal itself anyway. It’s more about what you have to do with your brain, how you’ve got to think because you’re not playing at the weekend.

“You’re not going to be filling up that space on a Saturday with a match. You’ve got to think of new things – you end up seeing the game a bit different.

“When you do come back to playing, you’ve got a more rounded view of football. You’ve got that perspective.”

Given the number of injuries that have punctured his career in recent years, Angol has grown “emotionally numb” to the waiting.

Companionship also helps and going through the suffering alongside Eisa helped both men to cope.

“He’s my boy and we’ve been doing the whole thing together,” said Angol, “it’s been easier for both of us during the long injuries.

“I’ve been on that physio’s bed for months. You have a different relationship with the physios and sports scientists after being there for so long.

“They are all one little team on the same page. They get the best out of me, giving me new ideas and things to look at and try and implement on myself.

“I’ll come out now from this injury different from when I went in. I’ve made little changes away from the pitch with exercises and the like.

“With my injury history, they know how to manage me, they know who I am and what I need to be to be able to last a whole season.

“If I go to a new team, they probably don’t know who I am and they’ll have to start from afresh with how to manage me.

“But here I’ve been out so long, they’ve figured out a plan for me and how to make me last.”

Hughes says City continue to monitor Eisa on a “day-to-day” basis to ensure there are no setbacks.

Angol, meanwhile, remains philosophical about his own prospects. While the noises about a possible new deal appear positive, the striker is happy to “go with the flow”.

“I know the season I’ve had and not being able to play a lot of games. I’m making sure I apply myself every day to be in the best situation possible.

“The summer I had off the back of last season wasn’t the best. Nothing can get worse than that.

“I’ve already experienced that low and nothing will scare me. It’s about going with the flow and when I do get minutes, just try to play my game.”