Today Manchester United and England were rocked by the news that captain Rio Ferdinand would miss the World Cup after picking up a knee injury.
Allegedly the injury was sustained after an innocuous challenge from Emile Heskey but this is just the latest in a long line of injuries.
Having managed to stay relatively injury free for the majority of his career, as soon as he hit 30 the injuries seem to have piled up. Many will say this is just age but the severity, variation and length of these injuries worry me and lead me to believe it is something else.
Back injuries, groin injuries and calf injuries have plagued Rio and now you can add knees to the list. It may seem selfish of me but my concern is now how will this affect United? Rio is a massive loss for England but when the World Cup is over and whether England win or lose he will be forgotten by many of those who care now and then he will become the sole concern of us, the United fans.
Rio is one of our finest defenders and although we coped last season, it would be a massive knock to no longer be able to rely on a player of his quality. We still have Vidic and Evans and the incoming Smalling but Rio really is in a class of his own when it comes to his type of defending and I’m sure I’m not alone when I say that having a fit Rio at the back inspires a different kind of confidence.
Jonny Evans claimed he missed out on the chance to cement his place in the team last season in the absence of Rio and Vida but with Rio’s injuries not abating he may get his chance again this season. Chris Smalling did look shaky towards the end of his time at Craven Cottage but I’ll put that down to the fact that his move to Old Trafford was in the back of his mind but that aside with Rio’s injuries he will need to step up immediately as he could be called upon at any time.
The club have decided they will be in charge of Rio’s rehabilitation and hopefully he can return to full fitness especially not having played at the World Cup this summer but for some reason even when he does get over this latest knock I feel we will be discussing Rio and injuries again.
I feel gutted for him. To come so close and be ruled out at this stage. I agree with you about the pattern of injuries being a concern. Each one on its own is not career ending but you do have to wonder about the frequency.
I have very mixed feelings. Healthy, he would’ve been huge for England and would be a significant moment in his career. But I don’t think he has shown full fitness at one point in the entire year, so it may not even be a total loss for England. A few months of rest may be best for England, United and Rio.
I feel so sad for Rio, he was going to captain England at the World Cup and its been taken away from him. This was his moment at the peak of his career. He didn’t deserve that. He has had a great career so far and this would have really capped it off. However we can’t get away from the fact that his body is starting to let him down. The injuries this season have been something else. He is someone we would get 40-50 games a season, this season we have struggled to get 20. SAF has clearly seen the warning signs as he has already signed Chris Smalling as a long-term replacement. Ferdinand needs to return to his family and try and get over this heartache. He then needs to think long-term about his career. He is 31 and as much as I want him to keep playing for England, I’m not sure his body can handle playing so many matches anymore. He might want to look at retiring from International duty and concentrate on Man Utd. The breaks he will get when International games are on will help him. If England qualify and they want him to return, like Carragher, then he could do that. But if he wants to play for Man Utd, at a high standard, for another 3-4 years then he might have to give England up.