February 23, 2008

Arsenal's Eduardo Da Silva injured in outrageous tackle, possibly ending his career. : A truly horrific injury, broken pieces of bone were sticking out of his sock as he was stretchered of the field. This is the sort of injury that you never truly recover from (See Alex Smith). I hope the FA bans Martin Taylor for life.

read story | posted by Goyoucolts to Soccer at 1:12 PM CDT (73 comments total)

Is there a video of the tackle?

posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 1:34 PM CDT on February 23

The video doesn't have a good angle of the tackle, all you could tell was that Taylor went in hard with his studs up into Eduardo's legs (looked like the shin or ankle).

The looks on the players faces were the only way to see how bad it was on TV. All the Arsenal players were well and truly rattled for the rest of the first half.

posted by trox at 1:39 PM CDT on February 23

posted by trox at 1:41 PM CDT on February 23

Thx for the pic trox, I couldn't find one.

posted by Goyoucolts at 2:00 PM CDT on February 23

From the above picture it looks like Taylor is doing a straight up drop kick into Da Silva's leg, but at full speed I have to wonder if this is just a case of mis-timing a play for the ball. As my futbol knowledge is practically nil I will have to wait for a reasonable analasys from footie fan.

posted by HATER 187 at 2:06 PM CDT on February 23

At full speed it looked like a reckless challenge deserving of a card. We just couldn't tell the severity of it at the time.

posted by trox at 2:31 PM CDT on February 23

Having not seen a video of the play this is simple speculation but from the picture it looks like the ball would have been past Taylor's foot prior to raising the studs. Did Taylor think he perhaps had a shot at the ball, maybe. Did he tackle for the sheer intent to injure? Only he can answer that one for sure I guess. Still, you hate too see a player take a shot directly on the shin like that.

posted by Folkways at 2:33 PM CDT on February 23

Just looking at the picture makes me cringe.:( A career is milliseconds from ending. That's harsh.

posted by Drood at 2:49 PM CDT on February 23

Here is a picture from a few milliseconds later than the above picture.

And here's a video of the tackle. Can't quite tell how bad it is from the video, but the snapshots at the end show the damage.

Nasty stuff.

posted by blarp at 3:28 PM CDT on February 23

God, that brutal. Unable to see it again.

posted by Nakeman at 3:34 PM CDT on February 23

Oh, snap.

posted by BitterOldPunk at 3:41 PM CDT on February 23

Wow. Picture says it all. The video has been removed.

posted by BoKnows at 4:02 PM CDT on February 23

Unfortunately for Eduardo, you can see from trox's pic that his foot was firmly planted in the turf when Taylor made contact. Nowhere for all that weight to go, except his leg. Yuck.

I tuned in to the match as he was being stretchered off and you could instantly tell how serious it was. The stadium was deadly silent and the commentators were very hushed. In fact, Sky Sports refused to replay the tackle until they found a "safe" camera angle at half-time. So you knew it was bad, bad, bad.

But how many awful tackles have there been this season - diving in at full speed, studs up and shin-height. Dozens. And after each one, the pundits have all said "how long 'til someone suffers a career ending injury?" Well now they have.

Arsene Wenger reckons Taylor should never play football again. Maybe that's a heated statement and a bit OTT, but it should be a long, long ban. Counted months, not matches.

posted by afx237vi at 4:12 PM CDT on February 23

Wow. Do I ever wish I hadn't clicked on blarp's picture link. No way I'm gonna look at the video.

I really do think that if you're responsible for an injury that ends another player's career, and it's the result of a deliberate action and not an accident, your own career should be ended as well -- or at least severely curtailed. You really need more of a sanction for causing a career-ending injury than you'd get for an injury that takes someone out of one game.

posted by lil_brown_bat at 4:24 PM CDT on February 23

Warning: not pleasant.

posted by grum@work at 6:31 PM CDT on February 23

Thanks Blarp. That's as graphic as I need to see that.

I agree with you Lil Brown Bat. That looks like intent to injure IMO. If they don't ban them or curtail their career, a big percentage of their wages should go to the injured player to compensate their lost earnings. Not from some insurance fund. The players actual wages need to be garnished. Hit these arrogant fuckers where it'll hurt them most. In their goddamn wallets. Or we could get vigilante, and let his Arsenal teammates have the guy alone in a room for a couple of minutes. Given the fucking thug a taste of his own medicine.

Grum: No WAY am I clicking that link.

posted by Drood at 6:42 PM CDT on February 23

Lots of lifetime/long-term ban talk already; I think that is premature. This was not a Kermit Washington type obvious anger fueled deal. There needs to be some sort of official proceedings with the specific intent of determining Taylor's intent, whether by the FA, or by the british judicial system. It does not seem unlikely to me that this is possibly as HATER mentioned above a case of "mis-timing." I am a runner, and not a team sports guy, but I have watched enough team sports at the pro and amateur level to know that when two people are moving and fighting as fast and hard as they can, sometimes shit happens.

Regardless, that is awful.

posted by everett at 7:40 PM CDT on February 23

Thanks Trox, Grum and Blarp for the pics.

I watched the game. The ghastly looks on the players' faces left me in a state of unease for most of the match, but by the end all I could think was that it was the end of Arsenal's campaign. The pictures remind me that it could well be the end of a career. So thanks for the perspective.

posted by lawn_wrangler at 10:22 PM CDT on February 23

Damn, grum's link plus blarp's == really is not pleasant. My leg hurts just from looking at it.

Regardless, I have to err on the side of caution about calling for a lifetime ban. I play a lot of ultimate Frisbee, and while we don't slide tackle, the pace and speed of players constantly moving around going for the object can make it very hard to correctly time going for the object resulting in some violent collisions. Consider that the pace of Premier League is helluva faster than us mediocre players, and I can easily see this simply being a mistiming.

posted by jmd82 at 10:27 PM CDT on February 23

that just looks f-ing lazy for a pro tackle. I didn't watch the game and I'm not clicking any links but I've played and watched enough games to expect pro defenders to know where to aim their tackles. That one pic is enough to see that he was onrushing the player, not going from the side. You can point your toe down and maybe ding him in the shin, or you can stick your studs up and nail the guy whether you get the ball or not. Eduardo had played the ball before Taylor got to him. Going in flying is uncalled for especially when the two players are reasonably mild-mannered and don't have a running feud. If there was no malice, that was the shittiest tackle I've ever seen. Matty Taylor is no Keano or Robbie Savage or Joey Barton so I really don't know where this came from.

I think auto reds for studs up challenges should be considered, just as they are given for tackles from behind.

posted by worldcup2002 at 10:48 PM CDT on February 23

From Trox' picture only...if he was going for the f-n ball, he would have had his left leg extended.

I saw Vidic take a nasty cleat to the shin today. It pissed me off. I don't understand tackles with cleats full bore at someones shin. Timing doesn't excuse an extremely poor tackle. Cleats up, a foot or two above the ball...should be an instant red in all circumstances. I'd go as far as an instant PK.

On preview: what you said, wc.

posted by tselson at 10:58 PM CDT on February 23

Wenger has backed off of his comments regarding the lifetime ban.

Actually, the Owen challenge on Vidic that tselson mentions could have been very bad as well; Owen was lucky that Vidic's foot was not planted in the ground and that the physics of the rest of it were such that no further injury occurred (although I'm sure Vidic is very sore today). And therein lies the problem with the "cost someone his/her career and you lose yours" school of thought. A results-focused penalty regime (in terms of the results of one's bad action, not the punishment imposed) arbitrarily penalizes those who have the misfortune of causing permanent or lasting injury while those who commit the exact same foul but by the grace of the football gods do not cause injury are penalized less harshly. I am more in favor of what is proposed by wc2k2 in terms of penalizing all infractions of a particular type more harshly in the hopes that it creates a strong deterrent to certain types of play.

Let's face it, as nasty and clumsy as Martin (let's not mistakenly impugn the name of the one responsible for this beauty, wc2k2) Taylor's challenge was, it's not as if he did it with intentional malice.

posted by holden at 11:33 PM CDT on February 23

I see your point Holden, but whether he scores a good goal or not is irrelevant.

posted by Drood at 3:21 AM CDT on February 24

that just looks f-ing lazy for a pro tackle.

I would say not only lazy but also very poor technique. My coaches over the years would have pulled anyone going in cleats up on a slide tackle.

posted by Folkways at 7:41 AM CDT on February 24

I see your point Holden, but whether he scores a good goal or not is irrelevant.

Drood -- maybe you're kidding, but my point was that Martin Taylor and Matthew Taylor are two different people.

posted by holden at 8:25 AM CDT on February 24

I have seen that tackle on both Sky and the BBC many times now and if you watch it, you will see that Taylor was going for the ball and caught Eduardo following through, after that ball had gone. Had it not been for the severity of the injury, I doubt if he would have got a red card. The BBC radio commenators at the time were surprised by the card, the Sky commentators were surprised by the card, the half time analysts
on Sky were surprised by the card. Ex pro's on the BBC afternoon sports show said it was not a malicious tackle and the card was harsh. Alan Hansen and Mark Lawrenson, who might know a thing or two about tackling, agreed that there was no malice in the tackle. Steve Bruce has said that it may not even have warranted a yellow in different circumstances.

All of which suggests that while it was foul, it was no worse than dozens of other fouls committed in every game, ever played, but it had horrific and unusual results. To demonise Taylor over this is pathetic and unjust; to call for his banning from the sport is, simply, moronic.

posted by Fat Buddha at 10:32 AM CDT on February 24

Life bans for every player who mistimes a tackle sounds like a great way of killing off football as a sport to me. Having seen the tackle live (I was at the game), and since on TV a few times, I'd agree with Bruce's assessment that in some games it wouldn't even have been worth a yellow card. Taylor goes in from a standing start, he doesn't lunge and he only goes in with one foot. It was a horrible injury, but not a horrible challenge.

Wenger's comments - since retracted, but significantly not apologised for - were a disgrace. To compare a player guilty of a clumsy challenge to a murderer shows a complete lack of proportion, sensitivity and sense.

posted by MrMustard at 11:49 AM CDT on February 24

To compare a player guilty of a clumsy challenge to a murderer shows a complete lack of proportion, sensitivity and sense.

In his retraction VVenger made it clear his comments were made in the heat of an emotional day. I think they were more than understandable in the circumstances: One of his rising stars had his leg split in half, and the whole team were in a state of shock and horror. I don't think he owes anyone an apology, he was just looking out for his boys. Now the dust is settling and he's had some time to reflect and clarify. Hardly a "disgrace[ful]" response, more like natural.

posted by lawn_wrangler at 12:08 PM CDT on February 24

Wengers comments smack of a PR exercise to me, rather than a genuine apology. The PFA should be raising hell and Taylor should sue him.

Wengers petulance was a result of his well known and childish inability to lose with dignity. Not they they lost, but you would have thought that they had, the way they reacted.

Let's not forget a heroic performance by the Blue boys and two seriously classy finishes from McFadden.

posted by Fat Buddha at 12:30 PM CDT on February 24

The tackle looks absolutely brutal. However, my knowledge of soccer is so little that I cannot form an opinion on whether it was dirty or not without input from those who know a whole lot more than I.

From what I have read so far it seems to have been an unfortunate occurance rather than a malicious tackle like the one in holden's link.

posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 2:12 PM CDT on February 24

From reading some reactions, I'm glad not to be curious enough to have a peek at the pics.
I saw the game live and thought it was a late challenge. The ball in the picture above is clearly there to be won but the fault with Taylor seems to be he's taking up an old adage in football. When referring to one player beating another while dribbling the ball, the saying goes, "Ball or man but never both." I think Taylor was making sure Eduardo wouldn't get past him by sticking him with his trailing leg. I think he intended to nail him even if he didn't expect or intend the outcome. And that's football. He's just playing the game.

posted by Texan_lost_in_NY at 3:05 PM CDT on February 24

The PFA should be raising hell and Taylor should sue him.

Your libel/defamation laws crack me up.

Wenger did over react; but lawn_wrangler makes some good points. Add to those that Arsenal were largely robbed at the end of a very emotional day on a dubious penalty. In addition, there does seem to be an active philosophy amongst some teams that the way to beat Arsenal are to be very physical with them, to the point of borderline poor sportsmanship and malicious play, so that's in the background as well. Should Wenger have said what he did? No, and after sober reflection he backed off of the comments (although perhaps not as forcefully as he could have done). But this is not simply your run of the mill inability to lose with dignity. There were/are a lot of extenuating factors.

posted by holden at 4:06 PM CDT on February 24

Point taken on the dubious penalty, however there is a football cliche that decisions even themselves out over a season, maybe they do, maybe they don't, but Wenger and his team are not children, they will benefit and suffer from poor decisions in every game: Arsenal were lucky with their first goal, as the keeper was fouled, so there's some balance, right there. So they weren't robbed.

I am glad for Arsene however that he has finally found a decent optician, even if he does remain very one eyed.

posted by Fat Buddha at 4:32 PM CDT on February 24

I saw a photo where Taylor is kneeling next to Da Silva immediately after the tackle. It appears Taylor is smiling as Da Silva writhes in pain.

I couldnt find the photos by themselves, but on this link to youtube
http://youtube.com/watch?v=BukHpck04p8&feature=related

take a look @ 28 and 49 seconds.

posted by bigrotty at 4:43 PM CDT on February 24

holden, you're right - I mixed up Martin Taylor (the offender) with Matthew Taylor.

posted by worldcup2002 at 4:55 PM CDT on February 24

bigrotty... ridiculous. You are flaming , and muck-raking.

posted by everett at 6:08 PM CDT on February 24

even if he does remain very one eyed.

From FatBuddha's profile:

Being a Birmingham City fan...

Pot, kettle, come in, over. I look forward to you abusing your own team and manager the day a Birmingham player is crippled.

Let's not forget a heroic performance by the Blue boys

Well, if you consider a win obtained in no small part by hospitalising a player inside the first 5 minutes of the game heroic, I guess so.

posted by rodgerd at 7:43 PM CDT on February 24

I inched my way around the inline photo, and I'm not clicking on the links. That the rough lads who comment on the Boro board said it made them sick is enough for me.

It was, in essence, the classic early-minutes clatter in which a defender aims to give a forward something to think about during the match. Except it was sufficiently mistimed to do the damage. It's not limited to Arsenal, and it's not going away from the game. Hansen and Lawrenson may be a little disingenuous to say that there was no malice -- they weren't averse to softening up a centre-forward -- but there was certainly no attempt to do any kind of long-term injury.

posted by etagloh at 8:41 PM CDT on February 24

I'm no bluenose, but I agree with Fat Buddha. You see challenges like that in almost every game, often without a card being given. I think Taylor just managed to catch Eduardo at exactly the wrong moment, when his weight was on the leg receiving the impact. The Arsenal players on the pitch didn't immediately take it out on Taylor, and Taylor looked genuinely disturbed after the break became obvious.

Straight red cards for clumsy challenges? Why not? But lifetime bans? There'd be no-one left on the park, even in the league I play in.

And while we're overreacting, back to the match itself - if Arsenal lose the title chase by 2 points or less, we should all hold Gael Clichy personally responsible.

posted by owlhouse at 9:05 PM CDT on February 24

Gruesome injury, great photography.

posted by Cloud9_Sports at 12:10 AM CDT on February 25

Here's a good article by David Busst, the former Coventry player who had his career ended by a similarly gruesome leg break.

posted by afx237vi at 7:31 AM CDT on February 25

Rodgered, your logic defeats me, are none us to be allowed an opinion about a team we support? Is any good result (it wasn't a victory) gained over a team that loses a player to injury devalued?

Almost every article I have read and just about every commentator I have heard believes the that tackle was not motivated by a desire to mutilate and that the resulting injury was horrific accident.

One of the best things I have read, written by non Blues fan, can be found here.

posted by Fat Buddha at 7:50 AM CDT on February 25

When I saw the tackle I didn't think much of it. Seemed like a free kick, a quick splash of the spray, a few minutes of limping, and a foreseeable tackle of retribution by Flamani upcoming.

Then I saw Cecs' reaction upon looking down; pale skin, frantic waves to the training staff, hands in prayer, and I had to rewind. Again, the tackle didn't look that bad.

It's football. Whatcha gonna do?

posted by r8rh8r27 at 9:33 AM CDT on February 25

Everett.... who am I flaming? I just saw a photo that concerned me and I raised the issue. Geez man relax a little and don't attack me when I was simply bringing to light a photograph.

If you dont think there are people in this world who enjoy hurting others, your lying to yourself. In American Football, how many times have we seen a vicious hit which knocked someone out. The person giving the hit looks like they won a gold medal or something. The same can be said about hockey as well. Any sport where there is hard contact, there are going to be people who enjoy hurting somone. Thats a fact of life.

posted by bigrotty at 9:43 AM CDT on February 25

My two cents. It was a horrendous tackle. Deserving of a straight red and an extended (ie, longer than 3 game) suspension. It was cleats up (which by itself is enough to deserve a straight red) and additionally was very high. Wenger was right to express rage and call for a lifetime ban, as Eduardo's injury will in all likelihood end his career.

That being said, the tackle does not deserve a lifetime ban. Such tackles do happen, and usually they are inadvertent. Usually, there is not a perfect situation like this one, where the attacker's foot is absolutely planted with all body weight on it. Wenger retracted his comments (again, correctly) because after the emotions had died down, he realized that the tackle, while horrible, was not the type of vicious, intentional, no doubt career killer tackle that deserves such a ban. Wenger has no need to appologize for his previous statements, IMO, because the emotional response was to be expected.

I wish the best to Eduardo, and hope he can one day make a comeback. I have read that apparently he doesn't even remember the incident, and I would say that is for the best. Unfortunately, there is risk in every single contact sport, and Eduardo and the other 21 men on the field all knew that a careless but inadvertent lunge could spell great harm to anyone of them, and conversely, that they could be the ones to provide the lunge.

posted by Chargdres at 10:05 AM CDT on February 25

"and Eduardo and the other 21 men on the field all knew that a careless but inadvertent lunge could spell great harm to anyone of them, and conversely, that they could be the ones to provide the lunge."

Another video nasty, look at it about 8 seconds in.

Has anyone considered that Martin Taylor might be deserving of some sympathy and compassion?

posted by Fat Buddha at 10:21 AM CDT on February 25

"Another video nasty"

Arsene probably didn't see that one though Buddha.

posted by Mr Bismarck at 10:34 AM CDT on February 25

Taylor is getting death threats and apparently some crazed Croat tried to attck him outside the training ground today. The world has gone mad. Decent article on the episode here.

posted by Fat Buddha at 11:23 AM CDT on February 25

"Has anyone considered that Martin Taylor might be deserving of some sympathy and compassion?"

I'll get back to you once I'm done sympathizing with Da Silva and his rehab over the next 2 years. Don't get your hopes up.

posted by deflated at 1:16 PM CDT on February 25

I'll get back to you once I'm done sympathizing with Da Silva and his rehab over the next 2 years

Enough over emotional hyperbole please. Eduardo is fully expected to be playing again by Christmas.

posted by Fat Buddha at 2:12 PM CDT on February 25

I think people here are commenting emotionally and not using a rational perspective in relation to how they respond.

As an example, in American football years ago, Lawrence Taylor tackled Joe Theismann and broke his leg in a graphic and bloody manner on national TV. I don't recall once hearing that LT should be banned from the NFL for life. Of course, it was obvious at the time that LT was horrified by the damage and was the first to motion for medical aid. I think I have heard that it still bothers him.

While Wenger's reaction was very emotional and probably ill-advised, I wouldn't hold it against him. He did make a retraction, whether or not anyone likes the manner in which he did it.

Da Silva will obviously have to live with this for the rest of his life. Don't forget that in all likelyhood, so will Martin Taylor.

(On a somewhat related note, what is it with Taylors and leg-breaking?)

posted by THX-1138 at 2:13 PM CDT on February 25

Buddha, most people never fully recover from high ankle spains. This is a compound fracture to the left fibula and an open dislocation of the ankle. Nine months is a minimum for coming back from this type of injury, and while he may be mobile again after that stretch, he likely will never again have the speed and agility that he had before the incident. In other words, it will be as if in one year, he put 15 years of age onto his legs. So, yeah, I really wouldn't try to play down the serious nature of this injury. His foot was nearly amputated.

The death threats to Taylor are beyond ludicrous, and he certainly does not deserve them, but I really don't think he deserves sympathy either. The fact is, while inadvertent, his tackle was horribly careless and red card worthy regardless of injury.

posted by Chargdres at 2:44 PM CDT on February 25

I don't think anyone is playing down the seriousness of the injury, plenty are overstating the likely length of rehabilitation, though.

posted by Fat Buddha at 3:17 PM CDT on February 25

Do you suppose Arsene saw any of the tackles freely available to view here, or was his perch on the moral high ground too elevated?

posted by Fat Buddha at 3:45 PM CDT on February 25

And how many compound fractures did those tackles result in?

posted by trox at 4:04 PM CDT on February 25

(to even my reaction out a bit... Eboue is indeed a disgrace).

posted by trox at 4:05 PM CDT on February 25

most people never fully recover from high ankle spains

Source? What are you defining as "fully recover"?

posted by yerfatma at 4:10 PM CDT on February 25

And how many compound fractures did those tackles result in?

None, as far as I know, but what's your point?

posted by Fat Buddha at 4:19 PM CDT on February 25

Yerfatma, I know of quite a few people who have suffered bad ankle spains, and continue to suffer from pain and mobility issues. Admittedly, this is anecdotal, but the point is that few people who have suffered such an injury will ever have the full range of mobility and speed that they possesed before. However, as anecdotal evidence is not enough, here is a study on the long term effects of ankle spains. There are other studies out there confirming this one, in which only 26% of the participants recovered fully within a two year period.

Again, according to the ortopedist in the article I linked earlier, "Imagine your worst ankle sprain and make it about 10 times worse and you're getting close to where Eduardo is."

While it seems Eduardo is likely to be running again in 6 months, it is likely that he will never have the same speed he had before, and in the top level of football, that extra burst of speed or quick change of direction makes all the difference.

posted by Chargdres at 4:31 PM CDT on February 25

Corinthians.

posted by Fat Buddha at 4:36 PM CDT on February 25

that extra burst of speed or quick change of direction makes all the difference

Can make all the difference. I'm with FB here: it's an ugly tackle and it's unfortunate and maybe Taylor is at fault, but let's not lose our heads over something that happens every game (the tackle, not the result).

posted by yerfatma at 5:15 PM CDT on February 25

"Enough over emotional hyperbole please. Eduardo is fully expected to be playing again by Christmas."

So orthopedic medicine has improved enough so he'll only be out a year; good to hear and a vast improvement. I would still like to know why I should feel any significant amount of sympathy for someone who put another player through a whole heap of pain and surgery and cost him a season out of his prime through being too clumsy/lazy/reckless to keep his studs down in a tackle.

Seriously if a driver is careless and hits a pedestrian, breaking their leg in two places, I do not start wondering how traumatized the driver feels for causing such suffering. Taylor's problems are self-inflicted. Just as Da Silva should've known that serious injuries are part of the game anyone making a tackle like that should know what happens to the other guy when they stuff it up.

posted by deflated at 5:48 PM CDT on February 25

I know of quite a few people who have suffered bad ankle spains, and continue to suffer from pain and mobility issues. Admittedly, this is anecdotal, but the point is that few people who have suffered such an injury will ever have the full range of mobility and speed that they possesed before.

There are a lot of factors to consider though, including the location and severity of the injury. Almost two years I suffered a high ankle sprain but it has had no lingering effect on my mobility. It was not an extremely serious injury as I was able to get back on the field a few days later but it was a high ankle sprain regardless.

posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 7:49 PM CDT on February 25

I suspect Eduardo will be getting better specialist care than "quite a few people" too.

posted by Mr Bismarck at 5:35 AM CDT on February 26

This would be the notoriously vicious central defender Martin Taylor who in a ten year professional career has been booked a grand total of six times? Yeah ban him for life the thug. Sheesh.

posted by squealy at 6:32 AM CDT on February 26

Perhaps the last word on this subject should go to the man himself. The key quote is, "I forgive Martin. It hurt like hell but I'm fine now. I know he did not do it on purpose."

So that's that then.

posted by MrMustard at 6:48 AM CDT on February 26

What you don't know is that the infamously lunatic thug Martin Taylor was lurking by his hospital bed threatening to break his other leg if he didn't say that.

posted by squealy at 7:16 AM CDT on February 26

I have to question the prognosis of a full recovery, unless you're going to completely humpty-dumpty the meaning of the word "full". We've got an approaching snowstorm here, and I've got various old orthopedic injuries reminding me of a hard truth: your musculoskeletal system isn't like a computer, and you can't just swap out a part when it quits or gets broken. "Recovery" comes from your body; medical interventions just support that recovery, and in the case of a major injury like this, I don't think the recovery is ever complete.

posted by lil_brown_bat at 7:56 AM CDT on February 26

LBB I will wholeheartedly agree with your point. Between a complete hip replacement from college football and a bone floating around in my wrist, I could pretty much be the channel 9 weather guy.

posted by hawkguy at 8:51 AM CDT on February 26

Deflated, you don't have to feel sympathy for anyone, if you don't want to.

I just heard on the BBC that they have postponed all of Saturdays premiership games as a mark of respect for Eduardo.

posted by Fat Buddha at 8:53 AM CDT on February 26

Thank you hawkguy and brown bat, that is the point I was getting at here. I provided evidence of the lingering affects of a much less serious injury to the ankle, to demonstrate how a much more serious injury, which also affects the same ligaments as in an ankle sprain, is also likely to cause long term problems for Eduardo.

Sure, he could recover enough to be a good player again, but this injury will never really go away, and for a strikers of his style, who depend heavily on their speed, this is a major problem.

posted by Chargdres at 9:15 AM CDT on February 26

this injury will never really go away, and for a strikers of his style, who depend heavily on their speed, this is a major problem

Once again you have stated as fact something that may or may not be true, based on your experience.

posted by yerfatma at 9:32 AM CDT on February 26

A similar injury didn't seem to do Henrik Larsson much long-term harm.

posted by squealy at 9:41 AM CDT on February 26

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