Di’Shon Bernard has revealed he thought about quitting football during his injury nightmare.

The defender, 25, had been out for 19 months with a knee injury after setbacks along the way. He made his return to first-team action on Tuesday night in Sheffield Wednesday’s 2-1 EFL Trophy win against Salford City. Bernard played 60 minutes as The Owls came from behind to win their first group game in the competition.

The centre-back had not played a senior game since February 2025 so it was a night of raw emotion, relief and celebration for him, his team-mates and the Wednesdayites who sang his name throughout and at full-time.

“It's tough to keep dreaming at times,” he said afterwards. “I've been in some dark spots. The setbacks I've had haven't been too kind to me, so it's just having the right people around me, keeping that good mentality to keep going and keep dreaming, keep believing that hopefully I'll be back on that pitch because some days I didn't have those dreams. It’s been a long journey and I’m happy to have finally come through it. There's still a little bit to go, but now I am definitely happy to to finally put the boots back on and play football.”

The Jamaican explained that the injury was a ‘hard one’ to take because at the time he felt he was in ‘top condition’, saying he was doing all the ‘extra little bits’ off the pitch to ensure he was ready to perform at his best. “Then just a weird little accident happens, and then your life turns around,” he continued.

Bernard revealed that he had ‘shed too many’ tears along his road to recovery and that even considered packing football in such was the mental torture.

He added: “Us boys try to keep a hard face at times, but in dark times, it's all right to feel vulnerable. I think my agent knows, especially when I had that big setback, I thought football's done. Let's find something new. He told me to keep going. So honestly, I’m grateful to those around me. I'm just happy to be playing football again, but I know it's still a long, long process to go still, but taking every game as it comes.”

Wednesday now have a two-week break before they host Sunderland under-21s in the same competition, a game Bernard will be hoping to get more minutes in.