All these players had amazing talent just no luck.
There are many stories of footballers who had the talent and skill to be a great but had their career cut short because of injury. Here are the top seven, who sadly never managed to fill their undeniable potential.
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6. Jonathan Woodgate
Woodgate started his career at Leeds United where he played alongside Rio Ferdinand at the heart of a youthful team. He was then sold to Newcastle United where he excelled to a point where Real Madrid signed him for £13.4 million. Unfortunately, his time at the Santiago Bernabeu was blighted by injury and he only made 14 appearances for Los Blancos before moving back to England. The rest of his career was blighted by more injuries as he moved further down the footballing pyramid.
5. Dean Ashton
During his early days at Norwich City, Ashton was compared with former England great Alan Shearer because of his physical stature. Sadly he never reached those lofty heights because of a long term ankle injury he sustained while on international duty. Ashton retired in 2009 at the age of just 26.
4. Abou Diaby
Originally, Diaby was signed by Arsenal as a long term replacement for Patrick Viera. The French midfielder was strong, powerful and could cover a lot of ground. His first few performances for the Gunners were very exciting but a serious ankle fracture stunted his progress and he has struggled with injuries ever since. He’s fit again now however, and could have one last shot at reaching his potential.
3. Owen Hargreaves
After a very promising spell at Bayern Munich, Hargreaves moved to Manchester United and looked to be the answer to their defensive midfield problem. He enjoyed a great first season but then started to struggle with injuries and was eventually released by the Red Devils.
2. Joe Cole
Cole was arguably as skillful as Paul Gascoigne in his pomp and there was huge excitement surrounding the player during his early days at West Ham. However, that enthusiasm subsided when he moved to Chelsea where injuries and poor form kept him out of the regular starting line-up. He did actually play a role in a Premier League title victory, but he could have been so much more. Cole has been at several clubs since but he has never been able to regain the spark he showed during his early days at Upton Park.
1. Ledley King
King almost certainly had the talent to be one of the great centre-backs, possibly of all time. He possessed every single skill to reach the top. Unfortunately, King had horrendous problems with injuries and was rarely able to play two games a week because of it. Had the Tottenham star stayed fit, he would have almost certainly captained England. Unfortunately, that wasn’t meant to be.
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