The freak injuries that have ruled players out of tournaments (2024)

From overhead kicks to a bike ride gone wrong, we've seen footballers sustain some rather bizarre injuries over the years that have ruled them out of action.

Norway defender Svein Grondalen was once sidelined after he ran into a wild moose while out jogging, while Rangers and Scotland defender Kirk Broadfoot suffered burns after a poached egg exploded in his face.

And with Euro 2024 right around the corner, players will be doing their best to avoid getting injured ahead of the tournament. But some have already had to pull out from the tournament, including Czech midfielder Michal Sadilek.

Rather agonisingly, it was announced on Monday that Sadilek had sustained an injury after falling off his bike and sustained a large cut on his leg. The wound has subsequently ruled him out of the tournament and his absence will be a huge blow for the Czech Republic.

But what other international football stars have been ruled out of major tournaments due to a freak injury?

Michal Sadilek and the bicycle

This accident could not have come at a worse time for the FC Twente player after the 25-year-old sustained a laceration to his leg.

Sadilek had also been in excellent form for both club and country, making his absence perhaps even more tortuous.

The midfielder had even captained Ivan Hasek's side during Friday's 7-1 victory against Malta, playing the full 90 minutes.

For his club side, Sadilek has played in all but three of Twente's Eredivisie matches this season, helping guide his side to a third-place finish in the league. And he will be hugely missed by the Czech Republic, with his national side sending him a 'get well soon' message on X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday.

'This is a big setback for us because Michal is one of our experienced players,' Czech Republic coach Haasek said.

'It was not without reason that he wore the captain’s armband during the match against Malta.'

Santiago Canizares and his cologne

Having established himself as Spain's starting goalkeeper ahead of the 2002 World Cup, Canizares was in the form of his life, but things took a rather unfortunate turn just before the tournament.

During his playing career, he was capped only 46 times for Spain, but he almost certainly could have won more, had he not suffered an unfortunate accident with an aftershave bottle that ruled him out of the tournament in Korea and Japan.

His excellent form for Valencia saw him receive a call-up to the squad but disaster struck after the then 32-year-old dropped a bottle of aftershave in the sink of his hotel room.

A shard of glass had fallen onto the floor before cutting his foot.

The wound appeared to be so severe that the goalkeeper had severed a tendon in his right foot - his stronger foot - before undergoing surgery on the injury.

'I do not consider myself to be unlucky by any means,' Canizares said to reporters after sustaining the injury.

'From the start of my career I have had several strokes of good luck.

'But, just like everyone else, I have also had difficult times which I have had to cope with. Now I have to overcome this blow to my morale, and in my case that may take a week or just three days.

'No one makes their way in the world of football without having to overcome obstacles.

'I still believe that the best moments of my career are yet to come and, health permitting, I will be aiming to be successful in the next World Cup.'

Canizares would travel with Spain to the 2004 World Cup, but would not make an appearance at the tournament. He'd drop back to playing as a second-choice keeper for the national side.

Bryan Robson and the bed

The midfielder would return 26 goals across 90 appearances for England during his international career, but he could have, and perhaps should have been more after he was ruled out of the 1990 World Cup in Italy.

The Manchester United star had suffered an Achilles injury during England's group game against the Netherlands but also sustained a rather unfortunate injury in his hotel room.

It comes as no surprise that Paul Gascoigne was involved in the incident either, after a bed fell on Robson's toe after Paul Parker told The Independent that the injury occurred during a 'test of strength competition' with one of the hotel's iron beds.

Recalling the incident, Robson told Man United's club website: 'Gazza always said I broke my toe but I didn't.

'Otherwise, I'd never have played in the first game. We were all having a bit of daft banter around the hotel and I tipped Gazza off his bed. But the bed slipped and landed on my toe and took a bit of the toenail off.

But it was ultimately the achilles injury that ruled him out of the tournament, with Robson stating: 'So it was very sore for the first game and I needed a pain-killing injection in my toe to get through the game. That was what happened.

'Honestly, Gazza was nuts. Sometimes, he could always be well over the top but, at certain times, when you're away for six or eight weeks preparing for a World Cup, you need someone like Gazza around, who is doing daft things that make you amused.'

Nani's overhead kick

Another ex-Man United star to be ruled out of a World Cup competition was Nani.

The Red Devils winger was sidelined for Portugal's 2010 World Cup campaign after he damaged his collarbone after attempting to perform an overhead kick that appeared to spectacularly backfire.

The injury had occurred during training, with the United star landing awkwardly on his shoulder and was subsequently ruled out of the tournament - despite initially admitting his optimism that he could be back quickly.

'I feel better already,' Nani said. 'I really don't know, now we have to see. When we get there [Johannesburg] we'll have to check again'