14 Top Players Who Saw 2025 Wrecked by Injuries

An array of soccer’s leading stars have been betrayed by their bodies over the course of the calendar year.

The increasingly congested football calendar, only exacerbated by last summer’s expanded FIFA Club World Cup, has taken its toll on those representing the world’s big-hitters, with injuries having never been so frequent.

Lengthy absences and grueling recovery programmes have marked a frustrating year for many top players, plenty of whom have spent far more time in the treatment room than on the pitch in recent times.

With that in mind, Sports Illustrated runs through a glut of big players who have seen their 2025 spoiled through injury.

Kai Havertz had never suffered a serious injury prior to a hamstring tear that sidelined him for three months at the end of last season. The German’s absence proved devastating as Arsenal failed to end their major silverware drought, with things only getting worse at the start of the new term.

After playing in Arsenal’s opening day victory over Manchester United, the 26-year-old was forced to undergo knee surgery and has been sidelined ever since—although a recent return to training has lifted spirits.

Havertz has not been Arsenal’s only long-term absentee in 2025. Gabriel Jesus has shared the treatment room with his fellow forward across the year after tearing his ACL all the way back in January during an FA Cup clash with Man Utd.

The Brazilian had become merely an afterthought for Arsenal supporters, especially as the Gunners continue to improve under Mikel Arteta, but he’s once again an option for the Spanish manager after a recent return from the sidelines.

Much like Jesus, Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen returned to the fold in December, but has been usurped as the club’s first-choice. The summer signing of Joan García only rubs salt in the wounds of the injury-prone German.

Ter Stegen, who was briefly stripped of the captaincy at Barça amid his injury woes, has played just five games for club and country in 2025 after missing the first four months of the year and a further four-and-a-half months at the start of the current campaign.

Andreas Christensen has kept Ter Stegen company in Catalonia, missing the bulk of the calendar year through five separate fitness issues. Minutes have been few and far between even when the Denmark international has been available.

A fresh injury in December will sideline Christensen for a number of months as he’s forced to battle back to full fitness yet again, with the ex-Chelsea defender needing to be strong both physically and mentally to cope with such frustrating setbacks.

Jamal Musiala was already forced to sit out the end of Bayern Munich’s title-winning Bundesliga campaign before disaster struck at the Club World Cup. The German playmaker succumbed to injury in North America during a battle with Paris Saint-Germain and has been absent ever since.

Bayern haven’t required their 22-year-old superstar to be successful during the first half of the 2025–26 campaign, with the arrival of Luis Díaz having eased the burden, but a recent return to team training following his horrific broken leg and ankle dislocation will be celebrated in Bavaria.

Injuries have plagued the career of Alphonso Davies and 2025 has been typically frustrating for the Canada international. Bayern Munich’s speedy left back suffered an ACL tear back in March and has only returned to action in recent weeks.

Vincent Kompany will be keen to bubble-wrap the defender over the coming weeks and months, with the winter break offering an excellent rest opportunity. Ahead of a home 2026 World Cup with Canada, Davies will be desperate to stay fit.

Roméo Lavia is an excellent player but unfortunately for the Belgian and Chelsea, his muscles and joints are seemingly made of breadsticks. The permanently injured midfielder is yet to complete 90 minutes for the Blues since joining in 2023 and has suffered five separate injuries during 2025 alone.

Hamstring issues have proven particularly devastating for Lavia this year, with just 11 appearances accumulated across the 2025–26 season to date. Rather unsurprisingly, he currently finds himself on the sidelines with a muscle strain.

Rodri never got the chance to back up his 2024 Ballon d’Or victory. The critical Manchester City midfielder suffered a devastating ACL injury at the start of last season, leaving him unable to make a difference for club or country until last May.

Pep Guardiola risked reintegrating the Spaniard at the Club World Cup but it proved an unwise decision as he suffered a hamstring injury at the tournament, one he’s been battling since throughout the season. He’s made just eight appearances since the Club World Cup for the Cityzens.

Lisandro Martínez went over nine months between appearances in 2025 as an ACL injury suffered last February kept him sidelined until late November. Not for the first time since his move to Manchester United, fitness issues hampered the centre back’s progress.

There are few doubts over the quality the Argentine possesses, with his versatility also useful to Ruben Amorim, but injuries threaten to turn a promising career into an average one. He will be hoping for better luck in 2026.

Few elite-level players boast worse injury fortune than Éder Militáo. The entirety of Real Madrid’s backline has been cursed this season, but the Brazilian’s fitness issues date back much further as he missed almost the entirety of last term through an ACL tear.

55 matches passed him by for Madrid and Brazil and two separate muscle injuries have since ruled him out of action this season. A tear in his left leg will sideline him until April 2026 as the agonising recovery process begins again for the luckless defender.

There’s something unfortunate in the water at Madrid. Following an astonishing 2023–24 campaign, Dani Carvajal has been blighted by injuries in recent times, an ACL tear ruling him out for the majority of last season and two further injuries limiting his impact this term.

Currently sidelined with a knee problem, Carvajal has managed just eight appearances for Madrid across all competitions since the Club World Cup, and a return isn’t expected until late January as he appears destined to miss out on the Supercopa de España.

David Alaba has shared the rotten luck of his Madrid clubmates over recent years, missing the entirety of 2024 through injury. Upon his return at the beginning of 2025, the Austrian was hoping for an uninterrupted spell, but has since succumbed to four different ailments.

Alaba, who finds himself on the sidelines once more, has been absent for 30 matches across the calendar year in total and is simply unable to stay healthy for an extended period of time. At 33 years old, his career is at risk of petering out.

Injuries have been a consistent hurdle needing navigation throughout Neymar’s illustrious career and the ageing process has only exacerbated his fitness woes. 2025 has been no different, with six separate injuries impacting the silky Brazilian for Santos and Brazil.

Neymar’s hamstrings have seemingly given up as he nears 34 and a knee operation was required to remedy previous fitness issues in December. The ex-Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain star will be eager to make a timely comeback ahead of what will surely be his final World Cup.

Tottenham Hotspur have had to battle without their attacking talisman Dejan Kulusevski throughout the bulk of 2025. The Swedish playmaker has missed eight months across the year as Spurs desperately attempt to find someone capable of emulating his influence.

Kulusevski’s latest knee injury has ruled him out since just before the Europa League final victory and Tottenham have missed him dearly. Unfortunately, his return isn’t imminent, with a late January comeback pencilled in optimistically.

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