{"id":7200,"date":"2026-04-18T11:27:01","date_gmt":"2026-04-18T11:27:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news678.top\/?p=7200"},"modified":"2026-04-18T11:27:01","modified_gmt":"2026-04-18T11:27:01","slug":"hugo-ekitike-suffered-one-of-the-worst-injuries-in-sport-how-does-he-come-back-football","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news678.top\/?p=7200","title":{"rendered":"Hugo Ekitike suffered ‘one of the worst injuries in sport’ – how does he come back? | Football"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\n\t\t\"Liverpool\t<\/div>
Hugo Ekitike\u2019s season is over (Picture: Getty)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It happened in an instant in the most innocuous of circumstances. But that one moment has left Hugo Ekitike faces a long and painful road back to football.<\/p>\n

The Liverpool striker, his club\u2019s top scorer this season having instantly taken to life in the Premier League following a \u00a379million move from Eintracht Frankfurt last summer, went down unchallenged during Tuesday\u2019s Champions League clash with Paris Saint-Germain.<\/p>\n

The realisation of how serious the situation was came quickly with the 23-year-old stretchered off the pitch. On Thursday, worst fears were realised when Liverpool confirmed their player had suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon.<\/p>\n

Ekitike\u2019s season is over, along with his hopes of featuring for France at this summer\u2019s World Cup. He will also miss a sizeable portion of next season with early estimates suggesting he will be sidelined for nine months.<\/p>\n

\u2018It is absolutely one of the worst injuries an athlete can suffer,\u2019 Stephen Smith, CEO and founder of\u00a0Kitman Labs<\/strong>\u00a0which specialises in injury welfare, told Metro<\/strong>. \u2018It is extremely debilitating. The timeline estimates and historical injuries of this nature show they take a significant period of time to recover from.\u2019<\/p>\n

It is perhaps the injury footballers fear the most and previous cases illustrate how long the road back will be. \u00a0<\/p>\n

Callum Hudson-Odoi\u2019s electric start to life at Chelsea was cut short in April 2019, returning to action after five months. His Blues teammate Ruben Loftus-Cheek on the other hand was out of the game for nine months. \u2018I came back from injury but didn\u2019t feel myself, didn\u2019t feel powerful, wasn\u2019t running past people and felt like I lost a lot of muscle and power,\u2019 he said.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\"TOPSHOT-FBL-ENG-PR-CHELSEA-BURNLEY\"\t<\/div>
Hudson-Odoi suffered the same injury in 2019 (Picture: Getty)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Going back even further, Laurent Koscielny suffered the same injury in May 2018, sitting out for seven months. <\/p>\n

\u2018I heard a crack and I knew it was gone,\u2019 the former Arsenal captain said. \u2018I was screaming on the pitch. I remember hitting my hand on the ground several times. It was an atrocious pain.\u2019<\/p>\n

Smith compares the Achilles tendon to an elastic band to demonstrate how vital it is for everything a footballer does.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\"Atletico\t<\/div>
Koscielny was left in \u2018atrocious pain\u2019 (Picture: Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u2018If it is a rupture, it is gone. It is gone completely. You don\u2019t half rupture it,\u2019 Smith explained. \u2018The power and force that goes through that area is tremendous. It is the strongest tendon in your entire body.<\/p>\n

\u2018Think of it like an elastic band. When your foot hits the ground it stretches and stores all that energy. Then as you push off, it snaps back and releases all that energy to propel you forward. If that elastic band breaks, the connection between your calf and your foot is lost, you can\u2019t generate any push off force to run, jump or accelerate. It stops the player\u2019s ability to perform the most fundamental aspects and movements of the sport. There is no running, no sprinting, no jumping, no changing of direction.\u2019<\/p>\n

As of Friday, Ekitike was still to undergo surgery but is expected to do so imminently. After that, the healing process begins. There will be months of waiting for the France international and even when he is deemed ready to return to training, the work to restore the speed and explosiveness that has made him one of the best strikers in the league will only be getting started.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\"Liverpool\t<\/div>
Ekitike went down unchallenged against PSG (Picture: Getty)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u2018The timeline for a recovery perspective isn\u2019t just about healing. It\u2019s about restoring that elastic spring,\u2019 Smith said. \u2018You can repair the tendon through surgery but getting back that explosiveness, speed and power, that takes the extra months. When you talk about playing in the Premier League with the levels that are expected, you are dealing with the top echelon of physical beings in that sport. So the level of reconditioning is massive.\u2019<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\"Liverpool's\t<\/div>
Ekitike was stretchered off (Picture: PA Wire)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As is often the case, there will be fears among supporters whether Ekitike will be the player he was when he does return. <\/p>\n

The sorry case of Presnel Kimpembe demonstrates perhaps the worst case scenario \u2013 the Frenchman was one of Europe\u2019s best centre-halves when he reputed his Achilles in February 2023. He was out for the better part of two years. He returned to action for PSG in February 2025 and now plays for Qatar SC in the Qatar Stars League.<\/p>\n

Every recovery process with be different however, with Ekitike in the best place for his journey back. \u2018He will be blessed with an incredible group of staff at Liverpool who have all the tools, capabilities and education to be able to bring him through it,\u2019 Smith said.<\/p>\n

\u2018He will absolutely have the right treatment to make a full recovery. But there is a lot of work and effort to get back to the level he was at.\u2019<\/p>\n

Arrow<\/title>\n<\/svg>MORE: Sergio Aguero urges \u00a386m Arsenal target to join another club this summer<\/span><\/p>\n

Arrow<\/title>\n<\/svg>MORE: Chelsea vs Man Utd: Predicted lineups today and confirmed team news<\/span><\/p>\n

Arrow<\/title>\n<\/svg>MORE: VAR has failed the Premier League \u2013 it\u2019s time to cut our losses to save our game<\/span><\/p>\n
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Hugo Ekitike suffered ‘one of the worst injuries in sport’ – how does he come back? | Football
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#Hugo #Ekitike #suffered #worst #injuries #sport #Football<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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