If there was a fracture, then some anti-football thing happened on the field

Soccer is a very injury prone sport. In some cases, those who play at the amateur level are even more likely to get injured than professionals. We have compiled a list of the most common injuries faced by soccer players, and asked Yuri Vasilkov, ex-physician of Lokomotiv Moscow, Spartak Moscow, Dynamo Moscow and the Russian national team, how to avoid these injuries and what to do if you do get injured.

Yuri Vasilkov: Injuries are a part of soccer, there is no escape from it. They say that for every 100 soccer injuries there are 70 hockey injuries. Hockey players are better protected, the hockey field is many times smaller than the soccer field, and it is no less important that the foot is fixed in the skate, it also reduces the likelihood of injury.

Groin Drive Muscle Injury

This is a tear, or in the worst cases, a tear in one of the adductor muscles. These muscles are responsible for bringing the legs together. In mild cases, the injury may not manifest itself while walking, accompanied by discomfort in the area of the inner thigh. In more serious injuries, it is manifested by sharp pain, the feeling of discomfort persists even when walking, bruising and swelling may appear.

Y.V.: This is indeed a very common injury. Soccer is developing, the requirements for players are increasing, the game has become more dynamic. The body responds to such loads, so there are tears in muscle fibers. Among amateurs, such injuries are rare, because they have less load. When receiving such an injury, it is necessary to contact a doctor to prescribe treatment, in some cases, surgery may be necessary.

Who? In January this year, two players of Real Madrid faced this problem at once – Toni Kroos and Keylor Navas. Among the RPL players – Lokomotiv Lokomotiv defender Maciej Rybus in early September.

Damage to the thigh surface muscles

Another common injury that not only soccer players face. These muscles are responsible for flexion of the leg in the knee and extension in the hip joint. Damage is accompanied by sharp pain, sometimes redness may appear. With a mild injury, such an injury can be healed without going to a doctor, a severe form requires mandatory medical treatment. Non-professionals sometimes encounter such injuries, due to insufficient warm-up before a sharp increase in load.

Who? Most recently, Barcelona midfielder Ousmane Dembele injured the back of his thigh in a Champions League match. A similar story happened to Real Madrid midfielder Marc Asensio at the end of December last year, he injured the anterior thigh. All fans of Russian soccer probably remember how in the opening match of the 2018 World Cup Alan Dzagoev left the field because of the injury to the posterior surface of the thigh.

Y.V.: These are probably the most common injuries for soccer players. Such injuries are accompanied by muscle contractions. A tear can occur, for example, because the footballer’s foot went off on a poor-quality field. On average, such injuries are treated for 3-4 weeks.

Knee injuries

Knee injuries can occur both sharply, that is, after a fall or collision, and develop gradually due to excessive loads, accumulated microtraumas. One of the most common is a meniscus tear. The meniscus is a semicircular cartilage in the knee joint, it softens its movement and protects it from wear and tear. A tear usually occurs when the bent knee is rotated.

Who. Spartak Moscow midfielder Roman Zobnin has already experienced a meniscus tear twice. The first time was without the intervention of a surgeon, but because of the injury the player almost missed the home World Cup. The second time he had to undergo surgery. The relapse occurred last fall during a match against Krylia Sovetov. Konstantin Kuchaev and Daler Kuzyaev also recently had a meniscus tear, both required surgery, both are still recovering.

There is also a hamstring strain in soccer players. This is damage to a group of muscles of the back part of the thigh, which are responsible for knee flexion. The most serious injury is damage to the cruciate ligaments, they hold the tibia of the lower leg. The most common injury in soccer players is a tear of the anterior cruciate ligament. During the damage, a clicking sound can be heard, the injury is accompanied by pain, swelling and tremors in the knee. Often occurs with a sudden change of direction.

Y.V.: The knee is the most powerful human joint, but it is also very vulnerable. Lateral ligaments, cruciate ligaments, menisci are very serious injuries. After a tear of the cruciate ligaments, a soccer player recovers for at least six months, and surgery is necessary for such injuries. Menisci and lateral ligaments in some cases can be treated without surgery.

Who? With the rupture of cruciate ligaments faced already mentioned above Roman Zobnin and Konstantin Kuchaev. The former missed the Confederations Cup because of the injury. Also in December last year in the cup match against Rubin, Lokomotiv’s defender Boris Rotenberg injured his cruciate ligaments. During the winter break, Alan Dzagoev suffered the same injury in a friendly against Cartagena.

Dangerous for amateurs: knee injuries rarely occur in amateurs due to lesser loads, but there is still the possibility of damage due to external influences. Therefore, even when playing in your backyard, you should remember to be careful of yourself and your opponent.

Ankle injury

The ankle joint is very vulnerable, you can banal stumble and get injured. Such an injury is accompanied by pain, swelling may appear. As a rule, there is a stretching or tearing of the ligaments.

Who? Last summer, a few days after moving to Monaco, Aleksandr Golovin injured ankle ligaments at one of the first training sessions at his new club. A month later, CSKA midfielder Kristian Bistrovic suffered a similar injury in the final minutes of the sixth round of the Russian championship against Ural.

J.V.: It’s a very common injury, but it’s individual for everyone, someone’s joint can recover in a week, but still, professionals play in a protective fixator for the first time. If the anatomical integrity of the ligaments is maintained, surgery is not necessary.

Achilles tendon injury

The Achilles or heel tendon is the largest tendon in the human body, yet rupture of this tendon is a common injury in professional soccer. It can be caused by a failed jump shot, a careless landing on the toe, or a direct kick. Amateurs risk injury if they overestimate their abilities and put their bodies under excessive strain. When the tendon ruptures, a sharp pain is felt, the leg swells, it is impossible to bend the foot or stand on the toes. In case of a partial rupture, the victim is still able to walk, but begins to limp, if there is a complete rupture, then walking is hampered by sharp pain.

Y.V.: Achilles tendon is a very vulnerable and capricious part of the body, such injuries are very difficult to treat. But still more often there are not ruptures, but inflammations of Achilles tendonitis and paratenitis. The fact that last spring two players in Russia were diagnosed with a rupture is rather an exception, such injuries are not common in soccer.

Who? Just an hour before the Russian national team was to be announced for the World Cup at home, Alexander Selikhov tore his Achilles tendon in training. The goalkeeper was able to return to the Spartak squad only at the end of November last year, so his participation in the home World Cup was out of the question.

A month before that, in the semifinal match for the Russian Cup between Spartak and Tosno, the same injury was suffered by Pavel Pogrebnyak. The striker was already recovering in Ural, he managed to return to the field only in March, it took him almost a year to recover.

Fractures

In addition to sprains, bruises, tears, soccer players have fractures. Most often suffer shin bones – fibula and tibia, as well as metatarsal or metatarsal (which are adjacent to the phalanges of the toes). Fractures come in different degrees of severity, especially serious injuries can end the career of a soccer player. At the same time, everyone notes that it is simply impossible to get such an injury on the soccer field independently. Such injuries are subject to both amateurs and professionals, so playing soccer at any level is important to always remember to be careful.

Y.V.: “Football is a contact sport, but fractures are not common. Fracture is usually a rough mechanical impact of the opponent. If there is a fracture, it means that some anti-football thing happened on the field”.

Who: One of the most memorable injuries involving a fractured tibia was suffered by Manchester United defender Luke Shaw in 2015. In late January this year, PSG forward Neymar suffered a fractured metatarsal bone in a match against Strasbourg.