Yesterday there was football. Today there is football. Tomorrow and the day after there will be football. There are more and more games and you no longer know what day you live on or what competition you are in. There is no respite in the calendar and that, inevitably, affects whether there is one in the game. Can we ask a soccer player to sprint more than 1000 meters per game if he plays 70 a year? Should we expect finesse in front of goal, intense pressure throughout the field and a dynamic and attractive game if those playing are physically and mentally fried?
For some time now we have been hearing complaints from footballers calling on the conscience of the organizations to review the calendar and make the business sustainable without playing every five days. While the shadow of a strike in men’s football hovered over the press desks, there have been a couple of serious injuries that have fueled the debate. One of those who has broken is Rodri, who was one of the most critical of the calendar congestion. The City midfielder played 66 games last season and averaged five days of rest between games, often less. He is one of the ten players who has accumulated the most wear and tear in the last five years, with more than 5,700 minutes and 50,000 kilometers on trips. Every year you want more, until there is no more.
Injuries are multifactorial and there is no scientific evidence that leads us to single causes. There is, therefore, no trick to avoid them. What there is is a consensus that the stress suffered in modern football, due to the accumulation of matches, the intensity of the game and the frequent travel and changes of competition, increase the probability of suffering severe muscle and joint injuries.
It is not worth reducing the burden that professionals accumulate because we imagine them flying in businessand with four hands massaging his legs. They play too much and from increasingly younger ages. After a month out, Jude Bellingham has once again been available for Ancelotti and, in one week, he has participated in all three of Madrid’s games. And on Sunday there is a derby. The case of the 21-year-old Englishman is significant: at 20 years old, he accumulates four times as many minutes as Frank Lampard, five more than Steven Gerrard and fifteen more than David Beckham at his age. It is difficult to imagine a long sporting career with such overexposure.
Two summers ago, women’s soccer also opened the melon of saturated calendars and did so while regretting that the infirmary was filled with VIP crusaders. Those who suffered ACL injuries played more games, had more weeks of two or more games, and had less rest time in the 28 days prior to the injury than non-injured players. They also traveled farther, for longer, and crossed more time zones. The football calendars played by women have increased substantially in a short time without, therefore, training or travel conditions having improved. Would better infrastructure and more personalized services have prevented misfortune for Miedema, Katoto, Williamson or Putellas?
