Football is a wonderful sport that we all care and love. But it does come with its repercussions with many players putting their bodies on the line every time they race onto the pitch. Unfortunately for some, their careers ended badly, stopped prematurely due to an injury.
We had many greats who had career ending football injuries that prevented them from becoming even more than they could have. What are some career ending injuries in football, and which are some of the famous players involved in them? Today, we honour those players.
David Silva
Starting things off with one of the most recent examples of football career ending knee injuries – David Silva. The Spanish international has had an illustrious career with Man City, winning absolutely everything that was out there. Not to mention that he even achieved enormous success with la Furia Roja, winning both two Euros and a World Cup as well.
After ending his contract with City, he returned to Spain, where he played for Real Sociedad. Things started off pretty well for him until he ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament. At the age of 37, he decided that it was not worth coming back from that kind of injury and called it quits.
Brian Laudrup
The younger of the Laudrup brothers, and some would say the more talented one, was one of the best players that Denmark has ever produced. He played for some of Europe’s finest, including Bayern Munich, Chelsea, AC Milan, and Ajax.
It was at Ajax where he just finished a 15-goal season, that Brian Laudrup decided to retire at the age of only 31. In his case, it was not a single injury but a pile of more of them. He decided to stop because he could not give his all anymore.
Carles Puyol
Puyol was an excellent captain. He played for Barcelona and led them through some of their glory years. Unfortunately for him, he had one of the most common career-ending football injuries after having problems with his Achilles.
He said that he will play until he is 40. But a series of surgeries only postponed the inevitable as Puyol finally decided to withdraw at the age of 36. His career will never be foreign and he goes down in Spanish history as a World Cup winner.
Marco van Basten
Marco van Basten is one of the best players Holland has ever produced and a three-time Ballon d’Or winner. He played for Ajax and AC Milan, with which he won the European Cup twice. He also helped the Netherlands lift the 1988 European championship trophy.
His story is probably the saddest out of all football players with career ending injuries. He played his last game at the age of only 28. Marco had a few ankle-related injuries which kept him off the pitch for two years, after which he finally decided that it was time to end it all and announced his retirement.
Out of all football players who had career ending injuries, Marco van Basten’s was the saddest as he still had a lot in him that he could have done.
