The most common footballer injuries

Football has always been closely associated with various sports injuries that constantly prevent players from achieving high results or simply enjoying their game. Among the huge list of injuries sustained on the playing field, we have identified six of the most common injuries experienced by most football players. So, today we will talk about pain and what kind of injuries to football players happen most often.

Cruciate ligaments

This problem often concerns not only football players, but also players of other contact sports. The main symptoms of trauma are:

• at the time of injury, there was a characteristic crackling in the knee area;
• feeling of instability of the knee joint;
• limited leg movement when fully extended;
• extensive knee swelling;
• sharp pain in the knees;
• hypersensitivity on the medial side of the joint.

Depending on the degree of sprain, a player may need surgery, but in any case, a specialist should deal with treatment immediately after injury. Typically, the healing process takes about 6-9 months, but with a good physical therapist, this process can be accelerated.

Ankle joint

Speaking about the injuries of football players, it is difficult not to recall the dislocation of the ankle. One of the most vulnerable spots of an athlete, if you do not regularly train the ligaments. Typically, such damage occurs after twisting or turning the ankle, which can be light or severe, depending on the forces applied to twist the ligament.

Symptoms:

• pain on the outside of the ankle when pressing on the injured area;
• swelling and bruising;
• limited movement;
• sharp pain when moving the leg.

Only an experienced therapist can determine the extent of a stretch, but do not neglect a medical examination when there is a suspicion of only a slight stretch that can be sat out at home. As a rule, the combination of such small injuries ultimately leads to serious consequences requiring surgical intervention.

Medial collateral ligament injury

This is the knee again, but only the injury touches the ligaments on the inside. A sharp twist or a hard hit are the main causes, which can lead to varying degrees of stretching.

The main symptoms are:

1. Mild pain, slight joint instability and absence of edema – the first degree.
2. Perceptible pain, knee swelling, joint instability and sharp pain when bending the knee – second degree.
3. Complete rupture of the ligaments, accompanied by severe joint instability and very severe pain – the third degree.

Regardless of the degree of injury received, it is recommended to see a specialist for a thorough examination. This problem should be taken seriously, since activities such as running and walking depend on the functioning of this ligament. Damage will cause discomfort when driving on uneven surfaces and under intense stress.

Damage to the meniscus

These injuries are usually earned by footballers in contact with each other on the playing field. As in the cases described above, the rupture can have several degrees of severity and, accordingly, its own list of symptoms for each degree.

The main symptoms are:

• inability to bend the knee;
• swelling (may not occur immediately);
• characteristic clicks in the knee joint during flexion.

Treatment can be done without surgery in a conservative way. The intervention of surgeons is most often necessary for severe ruptures, and in most cases the operation performed gives a positive result.

Hamstring

In such an injury, one or more hamstring muscles are stretched. A very common injury in football that can be mild and healed with normal rest, or severe, where a muscle is completely ruptured.

Stretching is accompanied by the following symptoms:

• sudden sharp pain in the back of the leg during exertion;
• constant tension on the back of the thigh;
• swelling of varying degrees;
• lameness;
• pain when pressing on a muscle;
• sudden attacks of pain.

In this case, it is important to immediately consult a doctor and not delay treatment, as complications may follow that require deeper treatment or surgery.

Groin

An unpleasant tear or rupture of one of the five adductor muscles of the groin excludes the player from the work process for a long time. It all depends on the severity of the stretch and how much muscle has been damaged.

There are three classifications of the severity of this injury:

1. First degree – less than 10% of the fibers are damaged.
2. The second degree is moderate elongation with 10% to 90% fiber damage.
3. The third degree is a complete rupture of the muscle, although there are cases with incomplete rupture.

Symptoms:

• discomfort in the groin area;
• tight and tense groin muscles;
• sharp pain in the groin area during activity;
• bruising and swelling of varying severity;
• the appearance of bumps at the rupture site.

We hope this article was useful to you, and you just went to ask about it, and not compare your symptoms with those described. One thing is worth remembering: in most cases, it is better to treat injuries of football players after consulting with an experienced specialist, if there is a desire to quickly return to the training process. Self-medication is ineffective and sometimes dangerous. We wish you good health!