All Whites captain Chris Wood: Knee Injury will need managing 'for my life'
Thursday, 16 April 2026
He made it back on the pitch before the FIFA World Cup, but All Whites captain Chris Wood admits his knee will require careful management during the tournament and throughout the rest of his career.
Wood has just returned for Nottingham Forest after being sidelined since October and undergoing knee surgery in December, easing fears New Zealand’s talisman could miss their first World Cup appearance since 2010.
He started in Forest’s 1-1 draw with Porto in the first leg of their Europa League quarterfinal last week and is expected to feature in Friday's (NZT) second leg.
Joining manager Vítor Pereira in the pre-match press conference, Wood opened up on his lengthy layoff ahead of the fixture at Forest’s City Ground.
“I feel like I’m fully up to fitness, the only way to get sharp is to play games and I need to hit the ground running. I’ve got no time to waste. It’s a knee injury, it’s going to take years of managing, throughout my whole career and my life,” Wood said.
“When I’m playing with the kids, playing golf or doing whatever I do after football, it’s going to be there. It’s always going to be in the back of my mind that I have to keep myself in top shape, ready to go.”
Wood’s return is timely for club and country. Before the World Cup with the All Whites, Wood has important business with Forest.
They are chasing a European trophy and fighting Premier League relegation – sitting 16th on the table, three points above the drop zone with six games to go.
Until Forest’s 1-1 draw with Aston Villa on Monday, Wood’s had not played in the Premier League since a 3-0 loss against Chelsea on October 19 – missing previous manager Sean Dyche’s entire tenure.
“It’s very nice to be back playing, it’s been a long time and tough over the six months. What an occasion to be a part of [on Friday],” he added.
“It definitely wasn’t a straight forward injury. We tried a few different avenues to get it right to begin with before going down the surgery route, but it just didn’t work out the way we wanted to.
“At least we got an outcome at the end of it and a goal to come back to and luckily I’ve come back with a decent amount of time to hopefully help the team.”
The All Whites have been drawn against Iran, Egypt and Belgium at the World Cup but Wood made it clear his focus remains on Forest for now.
“It’s definitely about these two competitions in the meantime.
“Hopefully they’re successful on all accounts; the European competition, the Premier League and then onto the World Cup.”