Dr. Riccardo Ciatti, first assistant of Professor Pier Paolo Mariani, who was interviewed by Corriere dello Sport, spoke about the increasing number of injuries to the cruciate ligament for professional footballers.

 

Since the beginning of the year, 180 surgeries were carried out at the esteemed Villa Stuart by Prof. Mariani's team. Underneath the scalpels are not only players, but also athletes of other disciplines. Among the football players who’ve gone under the knife there in recent months are Rick Karsdorp (Roma), Milik (Napoli), Tumminello (Roma), Morosini (Udinese), Pellegrini (Roma), and Ghoulam (Napoli) today.

 

Dr. Ciatti has identified at least five causes underlying this significant increase in cruciate ligament injuries over the last three seasons: 

 

1. The training methodology: Increasingly intense and more and more difficult to handle for athletes.

 

2. The tiredness of the athletes: Players are not robots, able to stay in the field for 90 minutes, then play another match, maybe only three days apart, then another training the next day.

 

3. The fields: Sometimes players move from a last-generation synthetic surfaces to a grassy ground, or train on dirt, which is not the best way to safeguard the joints.

 

4. The increasing popularity of dangerous soccer shoes: The lighter and less padded they become, the more stress players experience when they hit the ground and the entire weight and energy discharge goes to the knee.

 

5. Control of muscle strength: Today’s players have quadriceps that, thirty years ago, they only dreamed of. But this power has to be handled with care.