Lessons from the NFL?

The Achilles injury, in particular, is a source of concern for club medics – and with good reason.

A study published by the Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy in October 2011 discussed the effects of the NFL ‘lockout’, which ran from mid-March to late-July. It found there was an “unprecedented number” of Achilles tendon injuries during training camp and pre-season programmes, pointing to an “alarmingly rapid transition” from the end of lockout to the start of competition.

It noted that 12 Achilles injuries requiring surgery had been suffered across the league during training camp and pre-season – more than any recorded numbers for Achilles injuries across an entire league season. 

Five of those 12 injuries were suffered by ‘rookies’. Achilles injuries had traditionally been associated with older players, but the average NFL experience for all 12 victims in the summer of 2011 was just 1.4 years, and their average age was just 23 years and nine months.

The study also suggested an increase in the “relative risk of re-injury” following a return to full-contact training, with players, despite the best efforts of club medical staff, demonstrating “lingering deficits, that are not self-perceived and limit their potential for safe integration into full competition.”

Gbamin, Renshaw fears, could be the first of many to suffer in the Premier League.

“There might only be a handful of games to be played,” he says. “But the demands of those games won’t change. The moment the whistle goes, competitiveness will take over. They’re chasing a ball, chasing three points. They’re not thinking ‘I’ll slow down for this one’, they’ll just go for it.

“Even if the players are ultra-professional, that period where they have not been in the training ground is still going to cause issues. And if they haven’t been as disciplined as they should have been, they will be under enormous risk. 

“Even if they have, there’s still a big, big risk.”