Jordan Graham: I'll be back stronger than ever for Wolves

He's only aged 21 but Jordan Graham has already had to endure a few knocks in his professional football career.

Discarded by Villa, the club he'd been at since aged eight, without being given a chance in the first-team, Graham thought he was about to launch his career at Wolves.

Initially shunned by Kenny Jackett, who left him out of the pre-season tour to France last summer despite a shortage of left-wingers after Bakary Sako's departure, Graham was perhaps left wondering if he'd made the right decision by moving a few miles up the M6.

"I had a tough time when I first came here," Graham told the Express & Star.

"It wasn't easy for me and I felt I should have been playing a long time before I did.

"But in football it doesn't always happen the way you want it to.

"I struggled for the first year, I felt I should have been doing more and people around me were saying the same.

"I don't know if I'd have been able to do it without Scott Sellars.

"Scott just said that the gaffer didn't think I was ready yet and I needed to prove him wrong.

"When I went to Germany last year (for the under-19 Bitzer Cup in May) and was top goalscorer I expected to come back and be flying, but I didn't go to France in pre-season and wondered if it would happen for me here."

Graham had to stay at home when the first-team travelled to Clairefontaine.

And despite a goalscoring appearance in the final pre-season match against Doncaster, Graham wasn't involved when the Championship season got under way.

"I've never really spoken to the gaffer about France," Graham said.

"For whatever reason he didn't take me, he didn't think I was ready to play then.

"Now I look back I wouldn't change it. If I had gone to France and didn't do so well maybe I wouldn't have got a chance last season at all.

"He wanted me to go out on loan and prove I could do it in men's football and then into the Championship.

"I personally didn't feel like I needed to go out on loan. I knew I could do it in the Championship.

"But you have to let your football do the talking, so once the gaffer saw at Oxford I could do it in a competitive league he gave me a go.

"Oxford were great for me, a really good club and I knew they'd win promotion with their team spirit and some good players.

"Eventually I got given my chance. Once I started to play, me and the gaffer began to click really well and now we've got a good relationship."

After proving his worth during that fruitful loan spell at Oxford, Graham got his big chance in the Championship with Wolves.

Eleven games later he was the star of the season, providing countless assists and earning several man-of-the-match awards with his blistering wing-play and pinpoint crosses.

Then, just as he was getting started, his season was ended by a serious knee injury. It was incredible misfortune, both for him and for Wolves, with the club having suffered three cruciate injuries this season along with Michal Zyro and Nouha Dicko.

Graham's loss was arguably more keenly felt than the other two. His creative influence was there for all to see, and Wolves won just four of their final 20 games without him.

"I found it really tough watching the boys, probably harder than I thought I would," he said.

"We weren't doing great and it wasn't an enjoyable spell for any of us, it was frustrating, so it was difficult to watch.

"But it makes me hungrier. It makes me want to make a big impact when I'm back.

"I didn't pay much attention to the impact I had when I was in the team. Then after the injury people kept showing me statistics and videos of what I'd done and I realised I'd had quite a big impact and done quite well.

"I'm proud of what I did but frustrated that I couldn't carry it on.

"I was pleased the fans took to me, the gaffer took to me, my family were proud – I felt like I'd achieved something for the first time in my career."

It's now about getting himself in as good a shape as possible for another big season for Wolves in 2016/17.

"The cliché of 'coming back stronger' is definitely true," he said,

"I've been doing loads of gym work and upper body work.

"I'm a lot stronger now than when I was playing. I'm happy with my physical shape, it's just my legs now.

"Nouha's been really good to me, especially in those early days.

"He was walking quicker than I was, post surgery. But then I was kicking a ball quicker than he was, because the part I did in my knee, walking is quite tough but then kicking is fine."

He's had plenty of time to think about what he wants from next season, so what are Graham's targets?

"I want to win all the awards at Wolves' dinner! Plus top assists in the Championship, top three nominations for player of the season. I think I can do it!

"High targets, but I can hit them."

The way Graham has responded to adversity in his fledgling career so far, who would bet against him?