Luckless ex-Portsmouth, Birmingham and Swansea man back in league action after three-year nightmare
The winger never featured in a competitive match during two injury-hampered seasons with the Blues
An injury-plagued former Pompey man has finally returned to league action - after more than three years on the sidelines.
The luckless Jayden Reid never featured in a competitive match during two seasons on the south coast, despite being highly regarded.
The winger moved to Finland with IFK Mariehamn in January bidding to resurrect his career - only to sustain another lengthy injury in training following a couple of cup appearances.
Now, after two-and-a-half months out, he has finally made his league debut for his new club, representing his first since appearing for Walsall against Exeter in League Two in March 2021.
Reid featured for the final 22 minutes of a 1-1 draw with Gnistan, marking a staggering three years, two months and 25 days between league outings.
He then followed it up with another cameo off the bench last weekend in a 2-0 success over SJK to move up to seventh after nine matches of the Veikkausliiga campaign.
It’s heartening progress for the 23-year-old, who, before his arrival in Finland, had made just 17 competitive appearances in his career.
Reid told Mariehamn’s Instagram: ‘It feels good. I spent a long time out, obviously, and this is my first competitive game in a few years, so it felt good to be back out there.
‘It has been a mental battle. You are doing your gym by yourself or out on the pitch by yourself and then other times you are watching the team play in training or in games and you want to be out there and you have to be patient, it has been hard.’
Reid had been at Manchester United, Swansea and Birmingham before arriving on trial at Fratton Park in July 2021 under Danny Cowley.
Days after signing a 12-month deal, he ruptured cruciate ligaments in his left knee during a late substitute appearance in a pre-season friendly at Luton.
Ruled out for the season, he returned the following summer, appearing in four friendlies, yet tore his hamstring in pre-season at Bristol City in July 2022.
During his injury comeback, Reid then damaged the ACL in his right knee in training, putting him out for the remainder of the 2022-23 campaign.
Released by John Mousinho after two years with Pompey, he eventually moved to Mariehamn in January 2024 after six months without a club.
Reid participated in their League Cup campaign before the league campaign’s start, scoring on his debut following his introduction at half-time in a 2-0 win over Inter Turku.
Yet injury in training cut short that encouraging progress, putting him out for 10 weeks, ensuring a sizeable wait to make his league debut.
Now the winger is back fit again - and bidding for the regular first-team football which has so far eluded him over the last three years.