Nothing can be more frustrating for footballers than a spell on the sidelines, unable to take the field due to constant injury, niggles, aches, and pains.
Although the injury is part and parcel of the game, they can have a massive impact on any side or any player. The moment a player gets injured, it disrupts whatever settings and plans the manager has in place.
The manager then begins to worry as it could rake in troubles for the side for a number of weeks or months, especially when the team is vying for some qualifications or on the verge of clinching a silverware and the player is an integral part of the team.
Injuries can also have serious repercussions on the player, in some cases, a single injury can damage a player so much, he may never be the same again or be forced to retire.
However, some players as a result of nature are just prone to injuries and once they get injured, they tend to spend more time out of football action and their place in the squad comes under huge threat.
That said, we’ve decided to take a look at careers of some of the top injury-prone footballers, that were and are best of friends with injuries in the football world.
1. Jack Wilshere – West Ham and England
Wilshere, 27, was once touted to be the future Arthur Pendragon of English Football but have had his ambition hampered by series of injuries. He drew rave as a teenager for Arsenal following an outstanding performance against Barcelona in the Champions League.
He however failed to fulfill his true potential as persistent knee and ankle injuries hampered his progress and diminished his physical attributes and also spearheaded his exodus from Arsenal.
As brilliant as he is, his injuries have done more damage to him and this means we will never see his very best of football again.
2. Thomas Vermaelen – Barcelona and Belgium
The former Arsenal and Ajax center-back, who has made over 70 appearances for Belgium, has missed a huge amount of games through injury. The Belgian missed most of the 2010-11 season with a major Achilles tendon problem, which later required surgery, while his ankle and a stress fracture also sidelined him afterward.
As of 2019, Vermaelen had missed 104 matches for Barcelona since joining the Blaugrana side in 2014. On top of that, Vermaelen missed 88 games during his five-year spell at Arsenal, 31 games in a six-year spell at Ajax, and 17 matches at Italian side AS Roma.
However, he can be said to be among the fortunate ones when talking about players that are best of friends with injuries. Having won major laurels at Ajax, Arsenal, and Barcelona.
3. Marco Reus – Borussia Dortmund and Germany
Reus has only 44 caps with the Diemaanschaft due to his recurring injuries in recent years. He missed the 2014 FIFA World Cup, which Germany won, but played in UEFA Euro 2012 and the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Apart from his left ankle that has been ravaged by injuries, another frequent injury he nursed is a cruciate ligament that disturbed him in 2017. As well as oft-complicated groin issues that have weighed down his career at Dortmund.
When given the opportunity, Reus can become a fly in the ointment for any opponent but it’s just that, fitness has often been a concern for him and injuries have cruelly prevented him from representing Germany on the biggest of stages.
4. Arjen Robben – Retired {Netherlands}
Actually, this list would be incomplete if this Wizard’s name is missing. Arjen Robben is another player that can be compared to glass due to his fragility.
Although retired, Robben is one of the players who has possibly missed more games than he has played in due to injuries.
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During his playing days, Robben was a thorn in the flesh of defenders but didn’t enjoy play until he moved to Bayern Munich after his Real Madrid career was cut short by injury. He was sold by Los Blancos after just two seasons due to their frustrations with his fitness.
5. Michael Essien – Sabail and Ghana
This former Chelsea midfielder is another player who has been on the bench far more than the number of appearances on the pitch.
The Ghanaian might come last on top injury prone footballers, as he was very reliable as a midfielder who never backed away from his responsibilities while in action. But due to frequent injuries, we never got to see the best of him on a constant basis.
6. Daniel Sturridge – Trabzonspor and England
For all of Sturridge’s talents, he just can’t seem to shake off the injury bug that has robbed significant amounts of playing time and scintillating performance from him.
The former Chelsea, Manchester City, and Liverpool forward have endured rotten luck with injury over the years, which has seen him require treatment 48 times, with 31 of those coming as a Liverpool player.
7. Thiago Alcantara – Bayern Munich and Spain
This Spaniard could’ve progressed in his career if he hadn’t been hampered by injuries. He could’ve been one of the elite midfielders in the European scene, but injuries have denied him the chance to become that key player for both club and country.
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But even at that, Thiago’s quality hasn’t diminished just like Marco Reus, he puts up outstanding displays every time he’s given the opportunity to grace the football pitch. He has suffered from 21 total injuries since joining Bayern Munich.
8. Aaron Ramsey – Juve and Wales
Juventus’ Aaron Ramsey is well-known for one particular lengthy injury lay-off, but he has also suffered other injury problems along the way too. An entire year out with a broken leg was a costly spell on the side for his career, but Ramsey also had groin and ankle problems beforehand.
It’s safe to say that the horrific injury the Welshman sustained in the game against Stoke in 2009/10 English Premier League season has had a huge effect on him as regards injury, making him very fragile. Ramsey, of course, is one of the most injury prone footballers.
9. Abou Diaby – Retired – France
Talking about injury prone footballers, Abou Diaby is one of those players that battled with injuries for such a long time in the EPL.
The French midfielder spent nine years at Arsenal and could only muster 124 appearances during that period. Maybe there would never be a more injury-prone midfielder in the Premier League than the former Arsenal man.
10. Santi Carzola – Villareal and Spain
Santi Carzola is a midfield genius that also had a two-year stint but also had an unlucky career at the Emirates. Arsenal looks like a jinxed club when it comes to having injury prone players in the team as other names like Robin Van-Persie, Eduardo, etc also endured an injury-ravaged career while at Arsenal.
But for Carzola, being the best ambidextrous player in the world right now, albeit arguably, has suffered much with injuries so much that he was deprived of 668 days of his career during the agonizing two years at Arsenal in which he had 11 operations.
There was a time the former Spain international was advised to quit football after he underwent ankle surgery in 2016 but God is praised, after meeting with a renowned surgeon in Spain, things changed for him as regards injury.
Santi today is back with Villareal as the team captain, mesmerizing the fans of the yellow submarines.
11. Andy Carroll – Newcastle and England
Andy Carroll, 30, moved to Liverpool in a British-record £35M deal in 2011 from his boyhood club, Newcastle. But injury ensured that he didn’t replicate the stellar form he brought from The Magpies.
Niggling injuries bothered Carroll at Liverpool and he became surplus to requirements before h eventually moved to West Ham where he would become a treatment table regular. But again, the move didn’t materialize as he only made over 20 Premier League appearances.
Failing to prove his worth after returning to full fitness, he was released this summer and returned to Newcastle on a free transfer.
12. Michael Owen – Retired {England}
Michael Owen was amongst Europe’s most feared forwards after emerging as a teenager at Liverpool. Blessed with massive pace as well as nimble feet and ice-cold finishing ability, however, his game was altered following a serious hamstring injury suffered at Leeds when he was 19.
A series of problems including a broken metatarsal and cruciate knee ligament was amongst a host of problems before thigh and groin problems hampered his latter years.
In the 2000s, Owen was a leading attacker, he bagged the Ballon d’Or in 2001 up until he returned from Real Madrid in 2005 when everything nosedived.
13. Tomáš Rosický – Retired {Czech Republic}
Tomás Rosicky was overly injury-prone during his days at Arsenal. Rosicky’s career at Arsenal was repeatedly marred by injuries, with the Czech missing a total of 990 days through rehabilitation.
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The midfielder notably tore tendons in his knee in 2008 and feared at the time that his career was over. He eventually left Arsenal in 2016 after 10 long injury-stricken years in North London which he made only 170 appearances during the 10 years.
14. Mario Gotze – Borussia Dortmund and Germany
Gotze’s decline looks inexplicable as many would love to analyze how unfortunate his career has become despite scoring the World Cup-winning goal against Argentina in 2014 in Brazil.
Apart from not being able to deliver at a bigger club {Bayern Munich} after he left Dortmund, another ordeal of Mario Gotze has been the god-like love injuries have for him.
Recall that in his debut campaign at Bayern, he started just 11 matches in the league as injuries and fitness concerns didn’t allow him to get more playing time, which later served as an impediment for him to thrive for the Bavarians.
15. Gareth Bale – Real Madrid and Wales
Bale could certainly make any list of top injury prone footballers, as of 2019 at Madrid, Gareth Bale had suffered a total of 25 injuries – one more than in his six-year spell at Tottenham. He also suffered all manner of issues at Spurs; indeed, in addition to his 24 injuries, he also had three spells out with illness and played in just 203 of a possible 323 games at the Premier League club.
Ruptures to his calf, ankle problems, thigh issues, tightness in his hamstrings. Those are just some of the areas Bale has injured since arriving at Real Madrid in the summer of 2013.
Injury has prevented him from truly becoming the leader of Los Blancos and the player that everyone expected him to be when he arrived from Tottenham.
