A soccer player's greatest fear isn't losing a match or having their team not renew their contract; the greatest fear any soccer player has is being seriously injured. This means having to stop playing something you love, something you're passionate about, and which can sometimes endanger your health. In this article, we'll review the worst tackles in the history of soccer and their consequences for the players affected.
10- Manuel Pablo (Deportivo de la Coruña)
This ranking begins with a legendary tackle in Spanish football: the one suffered by full-back Manuel Pablo in a Galician derby, a heated match if ever there was one, between Celta Vigo and Deportivo de la Coruña in the 2001/2002 season. Brazilian Everton Giovanella made a truly vicious tackle on the Deportivo player, who was sidelined for almost a year after fracturing his tibia and fibula.
9- Alfie Haaland (Manchester City)
We continue with another entry that went down in history for its toughness, context, and its protagonists: Irishman Roy Keane and Norwegian Alfie Haaland , Erling Haaland's father. Revenge was served cold, five years after Roy Keane injured himself trying to overtake Alfie, the Irishman decided to stop the Norwegian by all means with a brutal kick with his studs that ended Alfie Haaland's career, forcing him to retire prematurely.
8- Sergio Asenjo (Atlético de Madrid)
He didn't need a Roy Keane or a Vinnie Jones; the biggest problem throughout Palencia goalkeeper Sergio Asenjo 's career was knee injuries. He has had to overcome no less than four cruciate ligament tears, probably one of the most serious injuries a footballer can suffer. His knee injuries have kept him off the pitch for almost a thousand days in total. The first of these occurred in 2001, when he was playing for Atlético de Madrid, and the last when he was defending the Villarreal shirt, in a match against Real Madrid in 2017. There are other similar cases, such as that of midfielder Sergio Canales , who tore his ligament up to three times.
7- Diego Armando Maradona (Barcelona)
The Argentine icon, ' El Pelusa ', suffered a tackle so recognized that it transcends generations. In the 1983/1984 season, Andoni Goikoetxea , then a player for Athletic Club, with no chance of playing the ball, went in with his studs first, onto Maradona 's left ankle, which sent Diego Armando straight to surgery. The image of the Argentine in pain on the pitch is iconic, but in the end, the injury was less serious than expected and he was out of competition for around four months.
6- Ronaldo Nazario (Inter)
There was a night when Ronaldo Nazario "The Phenomenon"'s career changed forever. In the 1999/2000 season, just as the Brazilian was playing in the Coppa Italia final against Lazio, he tore his patellar tendon. The recovery was long and arduous, and although he later signed for Real Madrid, he was never quite the same again.
5- César Jiménez (Real Zaragoza)
In the 2004/2005 season, Portuguese Luis Figo came feet-first onto César 's left knee. The nasty and extremely hard tackle caused a serious knee injury, and after undergoing four operations in two years, the Zaragoza center-back eventually retired from football.
4- Eduardo da Silva (Arsenal)
In a Birmingham-Arsenal match in the 2007/2008 season, Birmingham City player Martin Taylor sidelined Eduardo da Silva for ten months after fracturing his left fibula. "He could have lost his leg," declared the Brazilian. Fans and the press called Taylor a butcher, and Eduardo also commented that "Taylor's tackle was malicious."
3- Petr Cech (Chelsea)
The Czech goalkeeper's injury was very different from any other we've seen in this ranking. The then-Chelsea goalkeeper, Petr Cech , suffered an unfortunate head collision with Reading player Stephen Hunt . Cech writhed in pain and was sidelined for three months due to the skull fracture he had suffered. From that moment on, the legendary goalkeeper played the rest of his life wearing his iconic rugby helmet.
2- David Busst (Coventry City)
"They said they had to cut my leg off," explains David Busst , the former Coventry City player. Following a corner, Busst was kicked by Denis Irwin , which shocked Manchester United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel. The man who suffered multiple fractures to his tibia and fibula, as well as various infections, which forced him to undergo 26 operations and, of course, forced him to retire from football.
1- Ewald Lienen (Arminia Bielfeld)
This ranking closes with a terrifying injury that will go down in history. Surely everyone has seen the image of Arminia Bielfeld midfielder Lienen 's leg, with a 25-centimeter gaping wound. In a challenge for the ball, Norbert Siegmann inflicted the fatal wound on Ewald Lienen, which even revealed bone and muscle. Despite the severity of the injury, the German returned to play just 17 days later. This image went down in history as one of the most shocking in the history of football.
This is our ranking, summarizing some of the toughest tackles and/or injuries in the history of world football.
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