These images show how a 17-year-old Ukrainian lad who dreamed of becoming a top footballer is learning to walk again in Minnesota using prosthetics.

Artem Svergon lost his left leg in a Russian drone strike on Mariupol just a week into the Russian invasion when a UAV dropped a bomb on him and his teammates as they were playing football.

His best friend Ilya, 15, died in the attack.

A year ago, he dreamt of becoming a top footballer, saying: “Before our war, I played professional football.”

Now those dreams, like many parts of his country, are in ruins.

But Artem is determined to walk again.

Speaking about the drone attack, he said that he and his teammates “went into the locker rooms to change and the Russians – from a drone – dropped a mine down.”

He added: “The mine hit right where my friend was.”

Artem lost part of his leg and feeling below the waist.

But he survived. And he survived being in a Mariupol hospital as the Russian forces closed in on the city.

He said: “There were times where people would get shot… in the hospital.”

But months later he was still alive and evacuated to Germany where his rehabilitation process began.

He saw a video posted by the Protez Foundation, a nonprofit that helps people who have lost limbs to restore their quality of life and provides them with state-of-the-art prosthetics and training.

The foundation has been flying Ukrainian soldiers to Minnesota for over a year, according to US media, so that they can have state-of-the-art prosthetics fitted.

Artem said he saw that Ukrainians could send an application in and decided to fill one out.

Days later the foundation said it wanted to work with him and by May, he was in Minnesota.

Yakov Gradinar, Chief Medical Officer for the Protez Foundation, said: “We decided, ‘Okay, we’re going to give him a chance.”

Now Artem has a prosthetic and a brace to support his leg, which is paralysed.

Gradinar said: “It’s so awesome. It’s working. He still is learning how to use it, but he’s walking. You can see that smile. Each day he’s more up and upright.”

Artem said: “It’s hard. But every day I make progress. I am working with my prosthetics now and that’s giving me confidence. I’m able to walk… feel more manly.”

He added: “I’m very thankful to God that he didn’t leave me in that moment, and that I was able to leave. He’s here right now and he’s giving him a second chance at life. I have people around me and support, and I’m very happy that everything is happening right now.”

Gradinar said that it cost USD 60,000 (GBP 46,400) to fly Artem to the US and provide him with the prosthetics and that more fundraising is needed.

The Protez Foundation said: “His left leg had to be amputated above the knee, and his right leg became paralyzed. Artem’s dream now is to start walking again.

“We were able to bring Artem to our clinic in Minnesota. We will cover his stay and medical services, but we need help to buy prosthetics for him.”