Footballers whose career ended prematurely due to injuries

Few players are lucky to fulfil their potential and things fall their way. Many others end being among countless stories where great potential often remained unfulfilled due to one thing or the other, injuries being the most common villain. 

Here we have a sneek peek into such some cases and see some tales of careers cut short by injuries.

Marco Van Basten

A man who had won 3 Ballon D"Orr  and  283 goals in 379 games but had to retire at the age of just 28. He sustained an ankle injury in the 92-93 CL Final and had tried to make a comeback but wasn't able to rehabilitate satisfactorily. 

Thus on 17 August 1995, he had officially announced his retirement, though his persistent ankle injury problems meant he had effectively retired at just 28. His career may have been cruelly cut short, but Marco surely managed to leave his Mark on the game.

David Rodriguez Fraile 

Golden Boot at the U-17 World Cup 1997,  yet he doesn’t  even have  a Wikipedia page of his own. About a couple of years later, back problems started to mysteriously crack into David's fledgling football career.

Despite best efforts from doctors and the Real Madrid medical staff, they weren't able to get him back to full fitness and he had to hang up his boots  in 2001 at the tender age of 20. Nowadays, he owns a successful hedge fund business  after shifting his focus to complete an MBA from Harvard.

Abou Diaby

A 13 year senior career and only exactly 200 senior appearances across his entire career is enough to tell that unfortunately, his body was just not meant to last the hustle and bustle of professional  football. But still he endeared to the Gunners and Les Bleus  fans whenever he stepped onto the pitch. 

The fact that he managed to be a memorable figure for the time he was there was proof enough that the talent was there. It's just a shame that his body didn't relent and we couldn't see arguably one of the finest complete midfielders France had ever produced  in the mid 2000s in  his full glory.

Kerlon

Football is primarily a game where skill is demonstrated  via legs and in case of goalkeepers , their hands. Here came along Kerlon, who by all accounts was an up and coming samba superstar

with his rise in the 2005 u-17 World Cup, what set him apart and grabbed eyeballs  was his ability to Dribble with his head , popularly known as the Seal Dribble,  which did result him in being constantly kicked and fouled. 

But this performance didn't translate onto the senior level despite initial promise but constant knee injuries first in 2009 and then in 2012 made sure that his career never really went anywhere and he ended up retiring in 2017 with only 73 career appearances mostly in the  Japan , USA , Malta and in his homeland Brazil.

Jean Pierre Adams

A center back with over 20 caps for France, Adams had represented PSG and OGC Nice in the 1970s. Though his playing career had ended in 1981, as he ended up injuring his knee during a coaching center in 1982. 

However, he was improperly administered anaesthesia which lead to him being slipping into coma for nearly 40 years. He passed away on 6th of September 2021 at the age of  73 .

Ruben De La Red 

The Euro 2008 winner  had no Real(pun intended) injury problems up until 2008 when On 30 October 2008, de la Red was hospitalized after fainting during a Spanish Cup game against Real Unión. 

On December 2008  it was announced that he  was forced to miss the remainder of the 08-09 season as a precaution due to a heart condition and  the entirety  of the 09-10 season. On 3 November 2010, De la Red announced his retirement from football at only 25.

Cristiano Junior 

One of the first big superstars of Indian Football  having  taken the Indian Football scene by storm after scoring 21 goals in just 24 games for East Bengal  and had scored 5 goals in just 4 games. 

But it all came crashing down when in the the 78th minute of the Federation Cup finals Júnior collided with the then Mohun Bagan and former India No.1 goalkeeper Subrata Pal and was told that he was no more when they managed to get him to the hospital. Demo subsequently retired the shirt number 10 adorned by Cristiano Junior as a mark of respect.

Cover Credits -FIFA