Thursday 7 May 2015 23:36, UK
Brentford striker Andre Gray says he is reminded of how far he has progressed in his football career every time he looks in the mirror.
The 23-year-old has risen from playing in the Conference North to the verge of the Premier League with Brentford, but the scar which runs across his left cheek bears testimony to a far more dramatic turnaround in his life.
When Gray was 18 and playing for non-league Hinckley, he was stabbed in his home town of Wolverhampton after a night out clubbing.
But five years on, his 17 goals are one of the main reasons behind Brentford’s magnificent season, which sees them entertain Middlesbrough in Friday’s Championship play-off semi-final first leg.
And Gray, who joined Brentford from Luton a little under a year ago, insists that frightening incident was a blessing in disguise.
"That was a situation when I was getting myself into trouble and being with the wrong people," he said. "I got caught in the wrong place at the wrong time.
"I didn't deserve it but I was putting myself in certain situations where it was bound to happen. It's part of where I was from and part of my life at one point.
"It was around Christmas time and in March I signed for Luton. It gave me a kick up the arse to get out of this situation. I had something I could do with my life, unlike a lot of the people I was with.
"I woke up the next day not dwelling on it and thinking 'Oh God, I've got a big scar on my face', I thought 'that could have been my eye, my neck, it could have been a lot worse'.
“It made me get up and move on with my life. It was the best thing that happened to me."
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