{"id":882369,"date":"2026-01-01T23:14:49","date_gmt":"2026-01-02T05:14:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/01\/14-top-players-who-saw-2025-wrecked-by-injuries\/"},"modified":"2026-01-01T23:14:49","modified_gmt":"2026-01-02T05:14:49","slug":"14-top-players-who-saw-2025-wrecked-by-injuries","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/01\/14-top-players-who-saw-2025-wrecked-by-injuries\/","title":{"rendered":"14 Top Players Who Saw 2025 Wrecked by Injuries"},"content":{"rendered":"

Football <\/p>\n

\n
<\/figure>\n

An array of soccer\u2019s leading stars have been betrayed by their bodies over the course of the calendar year. <\/p>\n

The increasingly congested football calendar, only exacerbated by last summer\u2019s expanded FIFA Club World Cup, has taken its toll on those representing the world\u2019s big-hitters, with injuries having never been so frequent. <\/p>\n

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. <\/p>\n

With that in mind, Sports Illustrated<\/em> runs through a glut of big players who have seen their 2025 spoiled through injury.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n

dark. FREE NEWSLETTER. New SI FC Newsletter Global Embed. Sign Up to Get Informed With SI FC<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/canvas><\/picture><\/figure>\n

Kai Havertz has endured a tricky 2025. \/ Apinya Rittipo\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u2019s absence proved devastating as Arsenal<\/a> failed to end their major silverware drought, with things only getting worse at the start of the new term. <\/p>\n

After playing in Arsenal\u2019s opening day victory over Manchester United, the 26-year-old was forced to undergo knee surgery and has been sidelined ever since\u2014although a recent return to training has lifted spirits. <\/p>\n

\n
<\/canvas><\/picture><\/figure>\n

Gabriel Jesus has recently returned after a long absence. \/ Catherine Ivill – AMA\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Havertz has not been Arsenal\u2019s only long-term absentee in 2025. Gabriel Jesus has shared the treatment room with his fellow forward across the year after tearing his ACL<\/a> all the way back in January during an FA Cup clash with Man Utd. <\/p>\n

The Brazilian had become merely an afterthought for Arsenal supporters, especially as the Gunners continue to improve under Mikel Arteta, but he\u2019s once again an option for the Spanish manager after a recent return from the sidelines. <\/p>\n

\n
<\/canvas><\/picture><\/figure>\n

The goalkeeper has made just ten appearances over the last two seasons. \/ IMAGO\/NurPhoto<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Much like Jesus, Barcelona<\/a> goalkeeper Marc-Andr\u00e9 ter Stegen returned to the fold in December, but has been usurped as the club\u2019s first-choice. The summer signing of Joan Garc\u00eda only rubs salt in the wounds of the injury-prone German. <\/p>\n

Ter Stegen, who was briefly stripped of the captaincy at Bar\u00e7a 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. <\/p>\n

\n
<\/canvas><\/picture><\/figure>\n

Andreas Christensen can\u2019t catch a break. \/ Judit Cartiel\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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.<\/p>\n

A fresh injury in December will sideline Christensen for a number of months as he\u2019s 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. <\/p>\n

\n
<\/canvas><\/picture><\/figure>\n

Jamal Musiala has missed the entirety of 2025\u201326 so far. \/ IMAGO\/Michael Weber<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Jamal Musiala was already forced to sit out the end of Bayern Munich\u2019s title-winning Bundesliga campaign before disaster struck at the Club World Cup<\/a>. The German playmaker succumbed to injury in North America during a battle with Paris Saint-Germain and has been absent ever since. <\/p>\n

Bayern haven\u2019t required their 22-year-old superstar to be successful during the first half of the 2025\u201326 campaign, with the arrival of Luis D\u00edaz having eased the burden, but a recent return to team training following his horrific broken leg and ankle dislocation will be celebrated in Bavaria.<\/p>\n

\n
<\/canvas><\/picture><\/figure>\n

Alphonso Davies has been terribly unfortunate. \/ Grzegorz Wajda\/SOPA Images\/LightRocket\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Injuries have plagued the career of Alphonso Davies and 2025 has been typically frustrating for the Canada international. Bayern Munich<\/a>\u2019s speedy left back suffered an ACL tear back in March and has only returned to action in recent weeks. <\/p>\n

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<\/a> with Canada, Davies will be desperate to stay fit. <\/p>\n

\n
<\/canvas><\/picture><\/figure>\n

The Belgian is still yet to complete 90 minutes for Chelsea. \/ Robin Jones\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Rom\u00e9o Lavia is an excellent player but unfortunately for the Belgian and Chelsea<\/a>, 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. <\/p>\n

Hamstring issues have proven particularly devastating for Lavia this year, with just 11 appearances accumulated across the 2025\u201326 season to date. Rather unsurprisingly, he currently finds himself on the sidelines with a muscle strain. <\/p>\n

\n
<\/canvas><\/picture><\/figure>\n

Man City have had to cope without Rodri. \/ Emmanuele Ciancaglini\/Ciancaphoto Studio\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Rodri never got the chance to back up his 2024 Ballon d\u2019Or victory. The critical Manchester City <\/a>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. <\/p>\n

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\u2019s been battling since throughout the season. He\u2019s made just eight appearances since the Club World Cup for the Cityzens. <\/p>\n

\n
<\/canvas><\/picture><\/figure>\n

Lisandro Mart\u00ednez spent most of 2025 on the sidelines. \/ James Gill\/Danehouse\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Lisandro Mart\u00ednez 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<\/a>, fitness issues hampered the centre back\u2019s progress. <\/p>\n

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. <\/p>\n

\n
<\/canvas><\/picture><\/figure>\n

\u00c9der Milit\u00e3o (center) is worryingly injury prone. \/ Denis Doyle\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Few elite-level players boast worse injury fortune than \u00c9der Milit\u00e1o. The entirety of Real Madrid<\/a>\u2019s backline has been cursed this season, but the Brazilian\u2019s fitness issues date back much further as he missed almost the entirety of last term through an ACL tear. <\/p>\n

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. <\/p>\n

\n
<\/canvas><\/picture><\/figure>\n

Age is not on the right back\u2019s side. \/ Mateo Villalba\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

There\u2019s something unfortunate in the water at Madrid. Following an astonishing 2023\u201324 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. <\/p>\n

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\u2019t expected until late January as he appears destined to miss out on the Supercopa de Espa\u00f1a. <\/p>\n

\n
<\/canvas><\/picture><\/figure>\n

David Alaba is rarely fit. \/ IMAGO\/Visionhaus<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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. <\/p>\n

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. <\/p>\n

\n
<\/canvas><\/picture><\/figure>\n

Neymar has always struggled with injuries across his career. \/ Daniel Castelo Branco\/Eurasia Sport Images\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Injuries have been a consistent hurdle needing navigation throughout Neymar\u2019s 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. <\/p>\n

Neymar\u2019s 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<\/a> star will be eager to make a timely comeback ahead of what will surely be his final World Cup. <\/p>\n

\n
<\/canvas><\/picture><\/figure>\n

Tottenham have desperately missed their chief creator. \/ IMAGO\/Nigel French<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Tottenham Hotspur<\/a> 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.<\/p>\n

Kulusevski\u2019s 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\u2019t imminent, with a late January comeback pencilled in optimistically. <\/p>\n

READ THE LATEST SOCCER NEWS, TRANSFER RUMORS AND MATCH REACTION<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n

Read More<\/a> Ewan Ross-Murray<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An array of soccer\u2019s 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\u2019s expanded FIFA Club World Cup, has taken its toll on those representing the world\u2019s big-hitters, with injuries having never been so frequent. Lengthy absences and grueling<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":882370,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3790,3555,23078],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-882369","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-football","8":"category-players","9":"category-wrecked"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/882369","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=882369"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/882369\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/882370"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=882369"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=882369"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=882369"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}