PRAY FOR BILL injuries

. . . Antonio suffered one of the WORST

BILL Antonio suffered one of the WORST injuries for a footballer, which in the past was a signal for the end of a player’s career, and the rising star will be out of action for the REST OF THIS YEAR.

It’s also a huge blow for the Warriors who were hoping to tap into the talent of one of the country’s in-form players for their international assignments, including World Cup qualifiers, later this year.

The 21-year-old suffered an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury — probably the worst injury a footballer can suffer outside the leg breaks which immediately ends one’s career.

In the past, before advancement in medicine and technology, an ACL injury meant the end of footballers’ careers.

According to his Belgian top-flight side, KV Mechelen, Antonio will be out for about SIX to NINE months which means he is unlikely to play again this year.

“The verdict is bad, Bill Antonio tore his anterior cruciate ligament on the pitch at Cercle Brugge and will not play again this season,” the club said.

“He faces a rehabilitation period of six to nine months.”

A leading sports scientist, Dr Raijpal Brar of 3CB Performance, said:

“An ACL injury can be very difficult to recover from because it often involves multiple residual deficits such as quadriceps muscle atrophy, changes in movement patterns and compensation along the rest of the body (which may lead to compensatory injuries).

“Further, the research shows an ACL graft can * take upwards of 18 months to two years to fully integrate into the body, side to side leg asymmetry (a key indicator of injury risk) exists for an average two years after injury.

“And, lastly, fear of movement/re-injury (kinesiophobia) is one of the last things to subside which speaks directly to the psychological impact of the injury.”

But, it’s not all doom and gloom for Antonio. Colombian forward, Radamel Falcao, suffered three ACL injuries but returned to play the game at the very top level.

Eight other top players — Alan Shearer, Alessandro del Piero, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Roberto Baggio, Roy Keane, Xavi, Francesco Totti and Robert Pires — all suffered ACL injuries and returned to play at the very top level again.

Antonio has an advantage in that he is still very young and chances of his making a full recovery are very bright.

His advisers will be using all these examples to provide comfort and encouragement to the young forward who is facing the biggest battle of his career.