Tyreece John-Jules scored for Derby County on his return from injury on Tuesday night, netting with his first touch of the ball.

After almost three months without a competitive minute on the pitch, Tyreece John-Jules could have been forgiven for being a bit rusty when he finally made his return on Tuesday night.

The Arsenal loanee was coming on as a substitute for Derby County against Port Vale, having picked up an injury after just 24 minutes on the pitch for his current club, the last of which was on September 2nd.

But just a minute after his reintroduction, John-Jules had his first goal for the club.

The ball broke to Nathaniel Mendez-Laing on the left-hand side, and John-Jules spotted an opening, pulling away from the nearest defender on the right and pointing where he wanted the ball.

Mendez-Laing pulled off an excellent pass with the outside of his boot, and John-Jules finished the chance through the goalkeeper’s legs for 1-0.

Tyreece John-Jules’ goal for Derby County, with his first touch after his return from injury #AFC pic.twitter.com/h1Gx8VLaql

— AFC LoanWatch (@AFC_Loanwatch) November 29, 2023

The goal turned out to be the winner for Derby, the only goal of a tight contest to keep them in the play-off places.

After the game, John-Jules posted “time to kick on” on his Twitter page, and he spoke to the Derby YouTube channel about his comeback.

“I dreamt of this last night, to be fair,” John-Jules said of the comeback goal. “It’s just a big relief, I think.

“I’ve been through a hard time since I’ve been here, only played two games…just been injured. But I’ve been keeping strong, and I want to say thank you to the medical team for sticking with me and getting me through this period. I’m just delighted.

“I was just really down (during the injury), but I had my family around me, and the medical team always behind me, and even my teammates, every day coming in, trying to make me feel happy, trying to keep me up. Thank you to everyone.”