Peterborough United's Matt Garbett promises to 'come back stronger' after World Cup heartbreak

The Posh forward was due to kick off his and New Zealand’s campaign with a start against Iran on Tuesday morning.

Instead, a hamstring injury has robbed him of the opportunity to play in football’s biggest tournament before he could even kick a ball.

He previously told media in New Zealand that coming to terms with the injury blow has been an emotional rollercoaster, with the hardest part being seeing his parents in tears when they found out the news.

The injury is expected to rule him out for a month and therefore disrupt his pre-season with Posh, which is due to start next month.

In a message posted on his Instagram page, Garbett has vowed to come back stronger from this setback.

He said: “Where do I start… after processing everything the last few days, it’s pretty tough to put into words how I’m feeling right now.

“From everything you’ve worked for since a kid, to then being named in the starting line up for the first World Cup game against Iran and then suddenly have that dream be taken away from you through injury two days before the game is something unimaginable.

“This is not the path I had hoped for however fortunately I have good people around me and will only come back stronger from all of this.

"In the mean time I will be supporting and cheering on all the boys to go and achieve success in the tournament and make the nation proud.”

New Zealand achieved a credible draw in an entertaining 2-2 match against Iran in Garbett’s absence but now face much sterner tests against Egypt and Belgium.