Richard Keogh's agent says that the Ireland international is in a tough place mentally following his sacking by Derby County last week.
The 33-year-old is currently out of action until late next year due to a knee injury which he suffered in a car crash in September. Keogh was a backseat passenger in a car driven by teammate Tom Lawrence which it hit a lamppost.
Lawrence was subsequently charged with drink driving along with another Derby player Mason Bennett. Both have been banned from driving for two years and ordered to carry out 180 hours of community service.
Keogh had his contract terminated by Derby for "gross misconduct" and is currently appealing the decision.
"Richard is in a really bad way currently - it’s heartbreaking," his agent Cos Toffis told Talksport.
"I don’t think I can put into words how much he’s hurting and what his family are going through.
"Match days are probably the most difficult ones. The few matches there have been since the incident and the sacking, it's been difficult to get through them.
"While the game was on, Richard went and looked at St George's because he'll possibly be doing the remainder of his rehabilitation there."
Toffis is "one million per cent" certain that Keogh will make a comeback.
"If there's one thing he will do, it's play again," he said.
He is the most determined character I’ve come across in my life, and anyone who has met him will back that up.
He’s ahead of schedule, so that’s one bit of good news we’ve had over this last week.
12 or 13 months from now he’ll be putting his boots back on and getting back out there.
I was absolutely shocked that Derby sacked him.
It was something we were paranoid about but at no point did we think it was going to happen.
He played 356 games for the club and whenever a player commits to a club the way Richard has, you become family.
He’s only missed a handful of games, he’s fought in that shirt, he’s bled in that shirt, he’s cried in that shirt. To be kicked to the kerb is a really difficult pill to swallow.
Toffis refused to accept host Jim White's assertion Keogh should not have got into Tom Lawrence's car that he should not have allowed the Wales international to drive.
"I can't go into the actual events of the evening," he said.
"I wasn't there but I do have a side of events. I can't accept what you just said."
Asked if there was a possibility of reconciliation between the two parties, Toffis replied:
"The decision was made by them and they closed that door when they made that decision.
"Since that decision has been made my phone hasn’t rung. If they ring I will answer and there will be a conversation, of course.
"But I’m not sure where we go from here.
"There’s an appeal process and we’ll have to get through that and deal with everything from there."
Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
