David Brooks is preparing for a season filled with milestones, both personal and professional, as he balances a growing family with career-defining moments for club and country.
The 29-year-old Bournemouth midfielder will face childhood idol Cristiano Ronaldo when Wales open their Nations League campaign against Portugal in Lisbon on 24 September, before turning his attention to a first taste of European club football with Bournemouth in the Europa League.
Away from the pitch, Brooks and his wife Flora are watching their daughter Lottie take her first steps, a stage of parenthood the midfielder says he is savouring after the anxious early months following her birth. "She's crawling now and standing up. I'm getting my steps in when I get home," Brooks told Feast of Football. "Things have changed from the first couple of months after she was born where you're frightened to do anything. I'm enjoying it a lot now, she's got a personality so when you go home there's obviously a lot of enjoyment to be had."
Those family moments carry extra weight given what Brooks has overcome. Diagnosed with stage two Hodgkin lymphoma five years ago, he underwent chemotherapy that left him more than a stone lighter and at times too weak to leave his bed. He was declared cancer-free in May 2022 and made his comeback in March 2023. "It feels like a different lifetime ago," Brooks said. "Over the past couple of years, I've kind of got back to a place prior to that. So I feel good, and sometimes I forget that it even happened."
Having made his Wales debut in 2017, Brooks is closing in on his 50th cap and relishing the chance to test himself against Ronaldo as part of a Nations League group that also includes Denmark and Norway. A boyhood Manchester United supporter, Brooks admits he once owned Ronaldo shirts. "Being on that stage with potentially one of the best players of probably our lifetime - it's just crazy," he said. "It's a massive accomplishment for me personally to make it back to that point. Going to play against the best teams in Europe is obviously a massive bonus for Wales, and we want to showcase our talents and prove to the world that we're not just there to make up the numbers, that we can compete."
Wales are still recovering from missing out on World Cup qualification, and speculation over head coach Craig Bellamy's future following interest from Burnley added further uncertainty. Brooks, though, insists the squad's focus remains firmly on the next major target. "We've performed well under him over the past couple of years," he said of Bellamy. "Everyone has personal decisions that they're going to make." The squad, he added, are simply "getting back to work" with Euro 2028 in their sights.
At club level, Bournemouth have secured European football for the first time in their history after finishing sixth in the Premier League last season. However, the man behind that achievement, Andoni Iraola, has since departed for Liverpool, with Marco Rose taking charge at Vitality Stadium. "When Andoni told us he was leaving we were a little bit gutted because we did really well last season," Brooks said. "But changes happen. We wish him all the best at his new club. Once this gaffer came in he was really friendly. He just wanted to get to know everyone and set out what he wants done. We've all really enjoyed training and we did well in pre-season, so we're looking forward to getting the season started to show everyone what we can do."
Bournemouth will learn their Europa League opponents when the league phase draw takes place on 28 August, and Brooks is eager for his first experience of European nights at club level. "I've tasted going abroad with Wales, but I've never done it at club level," he said. "I'm really looking forward to those European nights and how special they can be. We're all looking forward to the draw and seeing where we're going to end up."
Before any of that, Bournemouth begin their Premier League campaign at Manchester City on Sunday, a fixture that will also bring a reunion of sorts with former team-mate Antoine Semenyo, who left the club in January but remains part of the squad's group chat. "We haven't thrown him out yet. To be fair, half of us in that group chat aren't even at Bournemouth anymore, so we might have to make a new one," Brooks joked. "Hopefully I'm not tracking him back too much. He's a fantastic player and we still keep in touch. I'm hoping he doesn't score against us, and we all wish he has another good season - after the first game of course."
Bournemouth have never won away at Manchester City in the Premier League, meaning victory this weekend would add yet another first to what is already shaping up to be a landmark season for Brooks.
Based on reporting from BBC Sport.