An lengthy injury is something everyone in football dreads. Whether that is the player themselves, their manager or the fans. However, it is, unfortunately, part and parcel of the game and we see injuries picked up on a regular basis.
The majority of injuries only have a short-term effect on the team with a matter of weeks usually needed to see the player recover and return to the side.
However, there are some occasions when this is not the case and, in fact, the player can find themselves out for months and sometimes even over a year.
Indeed, over the Premier League era, there has been some horrific injuries which have not only been gruesome to witness from the stands, but also caused lengthy setbacks for the player who has been forced to undergo long periods of intense rehabilitation before being able to step back onto the pitch.
With 30 years of the Premier League now in the history books, we at Football FanCast have taken a look into the ten worst injuries over the course of the English top flight – as we know it today.
10 Ryan Mason – Fractured skull
Going back to 2017, Ryan Mason had moved on from his boyhood club, Tottenham Hotspur, and was playing for Hull City. However, on a return to the capital, the midfielder played what proved to be his final game of football at the age of just 26.
Indeed, Mason was facing one of Tottenham's London rivals, Chelsea, and as a corner came swinging into the box, Mason and Gary Cahill collided heads as they both battled for the ball.
Mason stayed down following the clash of heads – for eight minutes of on-field treatment -and was forced off on a stretcher with the severity of his injury to emerge following his trip to the hospital.
After his trip to the hospital, it became apparent Mason had suffered a fractured skull which saw the Englishman spend eight days in the hospital where he had to undergo surgery as 14 metal plates and 28 screws were bolted onto his skull to help his recovery.
Ultimately, Mason was forced to retire and has since gone on to kickstart his managerial career with interim spells as the Spurs boss.
9 Peter Cech – Fractured skull
Similarly to Mason, the former Chelsea goalkeeper, Petr Cech, suffered a horrendous head injury back in 2006 against Reading.
Cech's career has gone down in Premier League history with the Czech Republic shot-stopper having won five FA Cups, four Premier League titles, the Champions League and the Europa League.
However, his career could have been ended a lot sooner than when he retired back in 2019.
After Stephen Hunt collided with Cech's head in the opening seconds of the game, the goalkeeper was rushed to hospital to undergo emergency surgery to have metal plates inserted into his head.
Although Cech was able to continue his career, he was forced to wear – the infamous – protective head guard for the remainder of his playing days.
8 David Busst – Broken leg
Playing for Coventry City against Manchester United in 1996, David Busst took to the field for what proved to be the final time in his career.
After a crunching clash between Busst, Denis Irwin and Brian McClair, the game was halted for a whopping nine minutes as the Coventry ace received treatment.
The injury was so severe that the double fracture to his right leg saw the United goalkeeper, Peter Schmeichel, wiping blood off the pitch following his exit from the game.
Amid the threat of amputation, Busst had to undergo 22 surgeries following the injury in 1996 and was advised by medical professionals to hang up his boots.
7 Luc Nilis – Broken leg
Aston Villa forward Luc Nilis was only three games into his career at Villa Park when he clashed with the opposition goalkeeper.
The striker broke his leg and was forced to undergo surgery twice in the space of the first four days following the injury.
However, despite reports from his surgeons suggesting that his recovery was going well, Nilis decided not to return to the game and that clash in 2000 proved to be his final time taking to the pitch.
6 Eduardo Da Silva – Broken leg
Rolling it back to 2018, Arsenal's Eduardo Da Silva suffered one of the most gruesome broken legs the Premier League has seen.
Playing away to Birmingham City, Eduardo suffered a severe leg break after a shocking challenge from Martin Taylor which saw the Brazilian's bone poking out his sock.
It was immediately clear just how bad this injury was with the likes of Cesc Fabregas visibly upset after witnessing the incident.
And it is fair to say the striker was never the same after the injury as he returned to action over one year later before being sold to Shakhtar Donetsk.
Club physio – at the time – Gary Lewis said: "I'll never forget it. It's probably the worst injury I've ever seen and when you see something that bad it really sticks in your memory.
"When I went on the pitch I noticed his ankle was dislocated and in the wrong shape. I also saw the bone sticking out of his sock, so I knew it was an open fracture.
5 Aaron Ramsey – Broken leg
Sticking with the Gunners, Welshman Aaron Ramsey suffered a similarly horrific injury just a matter of years on from Eduardo, in 2010.
Arsene Wenger's Arsenal were playing away to Stoke City, this time, and Ramsey fell victim to a horro challenge from the Potters' centre-back Ryan Shawcross.
The Englishman was instantly shown a red card for the challenge which snapped both the tibia and fibula of Ramsey.
Despite the severity of the injury, Ramsey was able to return to action later on in the year, however, this was just the start of what has been an injury-riddled career for the midfielder.
"I heard the crack of Ramsey’s leg from the bench," former Stoke forward Dave Kitson told The Sun.
"I heard the screaming. And the build-up to the game contributed to this moment.
4 Djibril Cisse – Broken leg
This was another leg break which was instantly clear of just how bad the injury actually was.
Back in 2004, Liverpool took on Blackburn Rovers in the Premier League, but the game was overshadowed by one of the worst leg breaks in the history of the league.
Indeed, with the French forward's foot planted into the turf, a challenge from Jay McEveley saw Cisse's leg break instantly.
The injury was so severe it snapped both his tibia and fibula and the eccentric Frenchman has since claimed had it not have been for the work of the Liverpool medical team he could have even lost his leg.
3 Gary Mabbutt – Fractured skull
Almost going all the way back to the conception of the Premier League – as we know it today – the Spurs defender also suffered a horrendous fractured skull.
Coming up against Wimbledon, John Fashanu was the man to deal the blow to Mabbutt who had to undergo surgery as a result.
No action was taken against Fash the Bash on the day, however, the injury was so severe it is believed to have nearly cost Mabbutt both his career and his eye.
2 Raul Jimenez – Fractured skull
There is an ongoing theme in this list and fractured skulls are becoming a common injury.
However, the case of Raul Jimenez is truly one of the worst injuries which the league has ever seen.
The Mexican striker was enjoying life in the English top flight and had proven himself to be a real threat up top at Molineux. But what was to follow in a game against Arsenal would bring all of that to halt.
Indeed, after a clash of heads from a Wolves corner, Jimenez suffered a fractured skull and had to undergo emergency surgery.
Once a reliable outlet of goals in the Premier League, Jimenez has never looked the same since his return to the game.
1 Pedro Mendes – Knocked out
In a list which has been filled with fractured skulls and broken legs, we will bring it to an end with something slightly different.
There is certainly an argument for more severe leg breaks which have been missed off this list with the likes of Hatem Ben Arfa and Andre Gomes.
However, there was a great deal of brutality surrounding this incident which involved Portsmouth's Pedro Mendes and Ben Thatcher.
Having played a pass, Mendes' face was caught with a purposeful elbow from the Manchester City star. The elbow sent Mendes hurtling into the advertising boards and left him unconscious.
But the injury did not end there as the Portuguese midfielder was driven to hospital, he suffered a seizure.
Mendes did make a full recovery from the incident, however, it could have certainly been much worse.
