The ordeal of relapses

A week ago, Valencia CF lost the possibility of reaching another European final and the way he left Sergio Canales. The Spaniard, recently reappeared after a long injury of ligaments, broken again, so will have to spend six months in dry dock. Begins for him the ordeal of relapse.

Injury (not saying anything new) sometimes involves more than just nursing: can you away from a future important event, like a final of a tournament or a championship with the national team, can ruin a transfer and, as we have seen in some unfortunate cases, it can destroy the career of a promising footballer (remember irremediable Sergi Lopez).

In elite sport, however much you work, however much care is taken to be prevented, is never free from suffering the relentless beat of the Fates. A leñazo, a crash, a fall ... many times one, without outside intervention, with a simple gesture of a bad joint. Of a sudden: bam! Breakage. That's it. No more. Injured to god knows ... After surgery and a first weeks of messages of encouragement and good wishes, the injured has to spend many hours of hard work, days, months, in a strange loneliness, a feeling of being in the locker room with a single foot inside.

But all ends when one takes first training and then finally the competition. Yes, returns to play, to compete, which is often called football feel. But the procession goes inside. Is the fear. Fear of relapse. A re-break. An uncontrollable fear that prevents work 100%, not only physically but especially psychologically. A fear that only time can heal that does not leave you, like a black shadow, until one afternoon, after a game either, you realize that for the first time just completed ninety minutes without thinking even once in that Sword of Damocles happy always pinned to your head. Something has told Xavi Hernandez and many others.

If long-term injury and is a terrible thing for a player, is a martyrdom borne unimaginable. Things hurt much more when you already know what you ache. Climbing a mountain when you finally reach the top, found at the foot of the mountain. And there is no turning back. There is only life and death. Back to start or retire for good. Luckily, Sergio Canales is very young, which gives better resilience and, above all, the expectation that despite the time lost, still has a lot of career ahead.

The same thing that just happened to Cantabrian happened a few weeks before Giuseppe Rossi, even worse. After spending more than six months in dry dock, has again broken and this time it will take longer to return: for a full recovery, minimizing the most of all the risks, doctors have scheduled a recovery plan for ten months. A bleak horizon.

Channels A, Rossi or any player who currently suffer from low long-term, they could come in handy to keep in mind the cases of other players who, like them, have experienced the ordeal of relapse until recovered and even reinvent themselves as footballers. Two names, two paradigmatic cases: Ronaldo Luis Nazario de Lima and Juan Carlos Valeron.

Ronaldo Nazario de Lima and Juan Carlos Valeron, two paradigmatic cases

Ronaldo Nazario de Lima is for many of us the best striker we've seen in our lives. But there are two Ronaldos. The before and after that of his injuries. The first was a long way forward, driving, very dribbler. Ronaldo won the Spanish League, Cup Winners' Cup, a Uefa Cup, two Copa America, an Olympic bronze, one second place in the world ... At the beginning of the season 99/00 suffered a partial tear of the patellar tendon in his right knee. Six months out. In the first game after recovering injured more seriously: complete rupture of the tendon itself. One-year low.

The Ronaldo returned to football after a year and a half fighting with and against your body and it was not Ronaldo. Better? Worst? What is certain is that it was different. Or his football phenomenon was able to adapt to their physical limitations. And we turned to leave everyone with their mouths open. Returned to big: leading Brazil win the 2002 World Cup with eight goals, including two in the final. After it won two more league with Real Madrid. He returned to Italy and in 2008 broke the patellar tendon in his left knee, "good". Is it over then Ronaldo's career? No: he returned to Brazil and won the Cup with Paulisa and Corinthians.

The case of Juan Carlos Valeron is very different. Your resume is not as full of hits like Ronaldo, but neither is an orphan of great moments, like the two Euros and the World Cup came to play or Centenariazo which was part and parcel of wearing the shirt of Deportivo club that it reached a whopping twelve seasons. Depor after leading that historic Cup win and direct in their best European nights to a Champions League semis, Valeron may well one or two steps up in his career. However, he decided to stay in A Coruña.

In February 2006 he broke his anterior cruciate ligament of the knee. In the following season, marked his comeback, fell. In early 2007, when it seemed finally recovered, broke again. He was forced to go through surgery and, after that, another year full of invisible and cold gym work until January 2008 he returned to stay. In total, two years without playing. On his return he spent several years with no shine at Depor with your game: Lotina kept him in the background until the specter of decline pushed the fear.

Valeron Depor did not save down to second but his figure became gigantic in the hearts sportsmanship, especially after the gray afternoon of descent, when all eyes pointed to as proof that Stoicism Galician to misfortune. A year later, as captain and helmsman, is taking the reins of a team that is close to achieving the difficult task of climbing to the first. Two moons will be 38. Is far from being able to dance playmaker that any thing that was left behind Valeron. Now you can move to the rhythm of waltz. But his quality passing and vision to play all the others are still those of a genius priceless.

With all this I mean that there may be a lot of football after the ordeal of chaining several serious injuries. Not all succeed, it is true. Many fall by the way, fall in rank or, in more unfortunate cases, they are forced to retreat. But there are many cases like O Phenomenon or The Wizard of Arguineguin. You can return to being a great player. Readjusting their game or learning to avoid the use of weapons that you have lost and to exploit the virtues imperishable. There are many ways to succeed in football. Maybe with one dream when it spikes are not the same that are offered to chain after injury. But they are there, waiting for the heroes who fall and rise.